Escape Artist
by Fiorea
Summary: Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tends to overdo things when in a pinch. MinaNaru, shounen-ai, angst, timetravel.
1. Idiocy

**Escape Artist**

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

**Genre: **Romance/Adventure

**Pairing:** Namikaze Minato/Uzumaki Naruto

**Rating:** M

**Warnings:** AU, **MinaNaru, INCEST, Shounen-ai,** Violence, Language, Angst, Mentions of Rape and Torture

* * *

**Chapter 1: Idiocy**

After months of tinkering, Naruto finally let out a whoop of triumph. Weeks of extreme frustration and sleepless nights slipped from his mind as he looked down at the scroll in front of him with a smug smirk.

Uzumaki Naruto, Tokubetsu Jounin by day and Hunter-nin in the shadows, had an epiphany four months ago when the third missing-nin shattered his third Hunter-nin mask in three consecutive solo missions. Knowledge of his identity may have followed each target to the grave, but it was hell to explain how he lost another mask while most ANBU and Hunter-nin were able to keep theirs intact for years. It must have been the third 'Tsunade Ba-baa Death Punch' to the jaw that slammed him into a eureka moment (and the wall).

He just needed to make sure those incidents never happened.

So, the most reckless Seal Master in history gathered his arsenal of Sealing knowledge and holed himself up in Konoha's ANBU Library to invent his next outrageous but ingenious Fuuin. Over those long four months, Naruto only emerged from the library for missions, ramen, and showering, spending the rest of his free time on a seal to prevent the inevitable fourth broken mask.

What he created should have been called the Idiocy Prevention Jutsu, but Naruto called it the _Jikan Makikaeshi (Time Rewind) no Jutsu_.

When activated, the seal would take the user back several moments so they could 'redo' those few moments, technically erasing and rewriting time. It took an enormous amount of chakra to activate, but delicate chakra control to determine the duration. The more chakra pumped into the seal, the more time rewound. The chakra requirement for the initial activation made it impossible to use by anyone else aside from other jinchuuriki and some S-rank shinobi.

Naruto had tested the final product, and it had worked perfectly. One minute he was walking towards the Obscure Ninjutsu section of the library, and fifteen seconds later he was back at the Medical Jutsu section.

_Hell yeah! Sasuke is going to be sooo jealous!_

Now all he needed now was a mission to test it out.

* * *

Naruto jumped through the forest to his A-Rank mission sporting his pack, two daishou swords, a brand new seal tattooed on his hip, and a moronic grin. He barely noticed the passing scenery as he sped towards Kusagakure where the target had been spotted.

Within three hours, he had located and engaged the target in a fight.

"This is exhilarating," the missing-nin's deep voice boomed. "I have the honor of killing Konoha's Crimson Spiral, Akamaki."

Naruto growled behind his mask of red swirls originating from its center, "Kanzai, the Roaring Giant of Kiri. Prepare to die." The two crashed through trees, caught in an intense taijutsu battle with neither gaining the upper hand. Kanzai whipped out his long sword and sliced at his executioner. Naruto parried the attack with his wakizashi, slipping under the enemy's powerful arm and delivered a chakra-backed blow to his side. Unfazed, he charged again with his powerful form. The sound of metal striking metal rang through the clearing. The giant accentuated each blow with a roar while Naruto twisted silently around his enemy's body.

"_Fuuton: Kamikaze!"_

Naruto released a gust of wind as he saw an opening. Two tornadoes rushed at the missing-nin, sandwiching him. The wind tore at his sword arm before a log replaced his giant form. He reappeared behind Naruto and delivered a deep gash to the back. He grunted in pain before forming seven Kage Bunshin to surround and pummel Kanzai and buy him time to prepare his next attack.

Suddenly, from under the Naruto clones, Kanzai roared:

"_Suiton: Gousuiwan (Great Water Arm) no Jutsu!"_

The clones were immediately demolished as the missing-nin's arm grew in size and pounded into the kage bunshin. Before Naruto could react, Kanzai charged smashed his giant fist into his side. He felt his ribs crack as he flew across the clearing into a tree.

"_Fuuton: Senpuuken (Whirlwind Fist)!"_

Naruto retaliated with a giant whirlwind which flew into Kanzai's leg, snapping the bone with a loud crunch. Naruto winced as he rose to his feet, clutching his side. He charged at Kanzai's kneeling form to deliver a critical blow.

"_Rasengan!"_

"_Suiton: Suihachi (Water Wave Palm)!"_

Kanzai raised his engorged arm to shoot a powerful jet of water at Naruto's incoming blue sphere, knocking the Hunter backwards and stopping his attack. Naruto's head smashed into the ground causing his vision to black out for a moment. Ignoring the broken leg, the giant dragged his bloody form to the younger man, sword raised to stab the incapacitated body, but suddenly multiple Kage Bunshin popped up around the clearing and the blonde performed a _kawarimi_ with one of the clones. Kanzai spun around in time to block a kick to his broken leg and stab through his opponent's side with his sword. In return, Naruto speared the missing-nin's stomach with his wakizashi. They froze for two short seconds in shocked silence, then both ripped their swords out of flesh and backed up, panting in pain.

"You little shit! I am going to _rip you apart_!" Kanzai roared and the two men reengaged in a battle of swords and taijutsu. Blood splattered the ground as their bodies suffered vicious attacks and exhaustion.

Naruto jumped back just in time to avoid a direct blow to the face. _Not the mask! Why is it always the mask?_ He seethed as a small piece of porcelain chipped off the edge, showing how close he had been to having his face sliced off.

Kanzai forced out a hysterical and gutteral laugh as he leapt forward with the last burst of energy. "Don't run away, boy. I want to see your face, the mysterious face that no one has ever seen and survived to tell the tale. I want to see it twist in agony as I gut the infamous Akamaki!"

"That is where you're wrong, bastard." Ignoring his protesting body, Naruto's face broke into a feral grin behind his mask – the mask which had thick, spiraling lines everyone mistook for swirls, which were actually nine blood-red, curving tails painted on white. "It's not Akamaki. It's Akashiori, the Crimson Tails!" Red mist engulfed the demon vessel's form as he pumped angry red chakra into the seal on his hip.

"_Jikan Makikaeshi no Jutsu!"_

His world twisted and warped into red before losing consciousness.

* * *

**A/N:** Here is my foray into the Naruto fandom. There aren't many MinaNaru stories out there, so I decided to contribute. This chapter isn't much but tell me what you think!

By the way, all jutsu mentioned so far – except for _Jikan Makikaeshi_ – are legit. I'll try not to go too crazy with those since I don't want the characters to be inconceivably invincible.

_May 12, 2012_


	2. Plight

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Plight**

Naruto groaned as he began to register sounds and smells. He couldn't tell where he was or why he was lying face down on what he guessed was the hard, rocky ground. The thick smell of blood reached his sensitive nose, and he groaned again in disgust. The blond shifted to relieve pressure on his arm only to freeze when pain exploded in his side._ Kami, what happened?_

He blinked open his heavy eyelids, his eyes slowly focusing on dark, moving blobs which he identified as humans. He didn't understand how he didn't detect them when they were only several feet away.

"I think he's awake," a voice – a man – whispered.

The blob in front of him moved closer and Naruto tensed. "Can you understand me?" A female voice reached his ears.

Unable to move away, Naruto merely nodded.

"Good. How do you feel?"

"Like some insane missing-nin ran me over," he replied weakly as bits and pieces of his memory returned.

Someone snorted in the background, "More like ya' got torn apart. Never seen someone so shredded."

"We didn't dare move you until our medic-nin arrived," the woman spoke again, her voice laced with annoyance at the man. "I've managed to stop most of the bleeding, but I don't have the skills to treat your internal and head injuries."

Naruto's head began to pound as he tried to keep up with her words. He whimpered at the intense pain which suddenly engulfed his entire body, and it became difficult to draw air into his lungs. Why was Kyuubi not healing him?

"Hey, stay with me! Don't close your eyes!" The woman called out to him. "Fuck, where is Saki? He's going into shock!"

Seconds later, a warm sensation covered his head and spread down his spine. Naruto sighed in relief as the pressure in his head lessened.

"We're going to put you on your back now," a different female voice warned.

Naruto grit his teeth as his body was turned over, but the warm sensation returned, this time directed to his chest and stomach. He opened his tired eyes again to see a pair of kind eyes before succumbing to blackness.

* * *

When Naruto woke again, the first thing he felt was wind against his face. He tightened his arms around whatever he was holding onto and carefully opened his eyes.

"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty. How are you feeling?"

"…Better." Naruto rasped. He realized he was being carried on someone's back as they sped through the forest. "Who…?"

"Ahh, we're Konoha-nin, and I assume you are too from that tattoo on your shoulder and your uniform," the man said amicably. "It's good to see you alive. You were covered in blood – well, your clothes still are but it's mostly dried now. You had a concussion and awful stab wounds."

"Um…," Naruto spoke hesitantly, unsure about his situation. "Where am I?"

"We're between Kusa and Hi no Kuni, headed to Konoha. We'll be there in a few minutes. In the meantime, how about we get to know each other better? I'm Kei, by the way. And you?"

"Naruto," he supplied shortly, uncertain how much information he should give.

"Okaaay… tell me about yourself. How did you end up all bloody back there?"

"Had a mission and fought a missing-nin. I think I won."

A man to his left snorted loudly. "Won? Looked like ya' lost that one, kid."

"Satoru, be nice," a woman to his right reprimanded. "I'm Saki, the medic-nin of this jounin unit. The rude man is Satoru, and the kunoichi at point is Mika. We felt a chakra spike on our return from a mission and decided to investigate."

Feeling a bit more comfortable with the team, he decided to disclose a bit more about himself. "I had a mission in Kusa and ran across an enemy nin. He was wicked with a sword, but I _know_ I won the fight!" He stated indignantly.

"Alright, alright. Calm down, kid." Satoru snickered. "You're a Hunter-nin right? You seem pretty young; how old are you?"

"Yeah… I'm eighteen. You know, you're not supposed to see my face. Actually, you are the first after the Hokage. Now I have to kill you, no matter how nice you've been," Naruto joked lightheartedly and placed the mask back on his face, "but I'll let you go this time since you guys saved my life."

"How kind of you," Satoru said dryly.

"We're home," Mika called from the front. They passed through the gate with little trouble since Konohagakure Hunter-nin were identified by their tattoo which could only be applied by the Hokage. The unit sped over rooftops to the Hokage Tower and arrived at the door to the Hokage's office.

"Enter," a male voice called them in from behind the door. They filed into the office and lined up in front of the Hokage's desk when the occupants of the room were interrupted by a loud yelp and heavy thud. The Hunter-nin had fallen off Kei's back in shock at seeing the Sandaime sitting behind the desk instead of a drunken Tsunade.

"W-what the hell!" Naruto stuttered from where he collapsed on the floor. Panic rose within him as he stared at the man in shock. "S-Sandaime-Jijii…" _Shit, shit, shit. What did I do? Ahhh, damage control. That's right, I need to do damage control, now._

"Hokage-sama!" Naruto stumbled to his feet and stood at attention. "I would like to request immediate private audience with you. I have urgent S-class information to deliver as soon as possible!" He continued hastily, this time using Hunter-nin codes for the highest of emergencies. "A red sun has risen from the West. Birds abandon lower nests. Shadows hover above."

The Sandaime's eyes widened and shoulders tensed visibly. "Team 21, dismissed! Report to mission control, and I will call for you once this issue has been resolved."

Members of Team 21 looked at each other in confusion but obeyed without question. Once the door closed behind them, Sarutobi activated Privacy Seals and directed hard eyes at the man standing in front of him. "Report!"

Naruto swayed slightly on his feet before straightening, removing his mask, and delivering a brief overview of his plight. "I, Uzumaki Naruto, am a Hunter-nin of Konohagakure. During a solo mission beginning between 12 to 14 hours ago, a jutsu of my own making malfunctioned, causing my being to be transported through time. Team 21 discovered, healed, and carried me here. Though I am uncertain of the current date, I am from the future and loyal to Konohagakure."

Silence reigned in the office.

"How can you prove this?"

"Uhh…" Naruto's professional attitude crumbled as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "I'm not really sure. Can I think on it?"

Sarutobi looked at him incredulously and narrowed his eyes. "Very well, you have until you leave this office. You have yet to gain my trust. However, your Hunter-nin identification tattoo, uniform, and knowledge of Hunter-nin codes are genuine. Now, provide your identity in detail."

He hesitated. He didn't know what he should disclose and what he should keep to himself in this delicate situation. Gathering his thoughts, he began. "I am Uzumaki Naruto, age 18, orphan, Tokubetsu Jounin in the Infiltration & Reconnaissance division, and Hunter-nin code name Akashiori. I was apprenticed to Ero-senn…er…Jiraiya-sama since age of 13 and gained Seal Mastery one year ago. Umm…yeah…" he trailed off awkwardly, keeping his heritage and status as the Kyuubi vessel to himself.

"Old man, can you tell me the date?"

Sarutobi raised his eyebrows at Naruto's rudeness but did as requested. The blonde furrowed his brow in concentration before letting out a long, loud groan. "Fuuuck, I've landed twenty-four years in the past, and I don't think I can get back to my time."

The Hokage gazed upon Naruto's despairing form. "How can you be certain?"

Naruto reached into his pack to pull out a containment scroll from which he unsealed a black scroll. He spread it open on the desk for Sarutobi to see. "This is the seal that I used to transport myself. It was supposed to only turn back a few minutes at most, but during battle, I pumped too much chakra into it."

Sarutobi's head snapped up in shock. "But…from what I see here, you would need an impossible amount of chakra to rewind this much time!"

"Uh, weeell…I might have forgotten to mention that I'm the container for the Nine-Tailed Fox…"

The Sandaime frowned. "I see, that certainly makes this plausible. Uzumaki-san, you mentioned you believe yourself unable to return."

He shrugged casually, trying to hold back his panic. "I never looked into a reversal, and since the theory is that you are rewriting time, then I've pretty much erased my past, as least for myself." His shoulders drooped lower as he spoke. "I don't know about other people in my time. Maybe they move on with their lives without me, making this like an alternate dimension or parallel universe for me…"

"Very well, I will give you the benefit of the doubt. However, name three concrete facts which prove you are indeed from the future."

The blonde thought for a moment. "The obvious one is that I've got Kyuubi in me. Second, I've improved the Rasengan. And third, I have a contract with the Toads Summons. Oh, I have one more," Naruto smirked. "I know the ending to the Icha Icha series."

"Show me!"

"Which one?" Naruto snickered.

Sarutobi grumbled, "The first three."

"I'll show you Kyuubi and the Toad contract, but I shouldn't do the improved Rasengan in here. Don't want to blow up your office." He carefully pumped chakra into the seal on his stomach, but frowned when nothing happened. Naruto's eyes widened when he realized he could barely feel chakra in his body. "Wha…?" He tried again, pushing chakra with more strength, until finally the seal appeared faintly.

"Something's wrong with my coils, old man. Give me a moment to check something." Without waiting for a response, Naruto sank into his mindscape. When he arrived at the demon's cage, his breath hitched in shock.

'Kyuubi!' Naruto rushed forward and easily slipped between the bars. 'Kyuubi, what's wrong with you? What happened?' The fox's red form had grown in size, but he was trembling and gasping shallow breaths. What the boy could see of his body looked stretched and taunt. He was curled up in a tight ball, obviously in extreme pain.

'_Kit?'_ The fox panted. _'What has h-happened out there? I can't c-concentrate enough t-to look.'_ Naruto tried to stroke his fur, but snatched his hand away as it burned his skin.

'I pumped too much chakra into the seal. We've traveled too far back in time – over two decades. Sandaime-Jijii is alive!'

'_That explains my condition,'_ a violent shudder wracked Kyuubi's frame. _'It didn't just r-rewind time; it transported your body through time and p-placed you in the past.'_

'Placed me in the past? Then why weren't there two of me when we tested it in the library?'

'_I'm not certain. My guess is that your body replaces or m-merges with the past's when you reappear.'_

'Then…what about now?' Naruto furrowed his brow. 'Why am I alive when there isn't a me to replace?'

'_It is possible that since t-there isn't anything to merge with, you remain as your own entity.'_

Satisfied with that answer, Naruto took a closer look at the dingy cage around them. 'What about you? Why are you like this?' Naruto gestured at his feverish form. 'Is it because there's another you in this time?'

'_Most likely.'_ Kyuubi paused to curl tighter into himself, his chakra spiked before receding. _'I believe this is d-due to the Yin portion of my chakra. Your dratted f-father sealed my Yin chakra within the Shinigami and my Y-yang chakra in you. However, in this time, your mother holds both the Yin and Yang…'_

'So that means you suddenly got your extra Yin chakra merged into you too.' Naruto exclaimed. 'Are you in pain because of my father's seal?'

'_P-probably. His seal was made to hold only m-my Yang chakra. It currently feels as if I am being s-strangled. My b-being is becoming too large to be c-contained within the existing seal.'_

'What if I expand the seal? Would that work? Adding another Four Symbols Seal to make it a Twelve Tringrams Seal.'

'_The theory is l-logical. Y-you can only t-try.'_ The fox's breathing became even shallower. '_Hurry! We are running short on time. T-the seal is about to s-shatter, and we will both perish!'_ A larger chakra spike flared from Kyuubi's body.

'Can I do it in mindscape, or do I need to go back outside?'

'_It m-matters not!'_

Naruto shoved his hand into his pack for the scroll containing all of his materials on Sealing. _Found it!_ Tossing everything else aside, he threw open the scroll on Spirit Sealing. The Seal Master slammed a kunai into his left hand and dipped his brush into the dripping blood. He mentally materialized a large sheet of paper to duplicate the Four Symbols Seal. Working as rapidly as possible without making a mistake, he hastily covered the surface with a seal made up of three Four Symbol Seals. As a precaution, he added a Five-Seal Barrier to the corners and center to prevent any chance of physical destruction to the seal itself.

Once completed, he threw aside the brush and slammed his new seal on top of his father's rapidly fraying seal, pumping in all the chakra he could gather, both Kyuubi's and his own. The seal glowed bright red and suddenly a huge red flash and tremors rocked his mindscape.

'Kyuubi!' He yelled, but his voice could not penetrate the rumbling and creaking of his surroundings.

An ear-splitting roar from the convulsing fox shot through his mindscape and jolted up his spine. Following the jolt was a sharp ache which attacked his head. Naruto could barely see with his blinded eyes the ceiling cracking, crumbling, and reforming. Pipes ripped apart, clanking as they hit the ground. Large chunks of concrete tumbled down onto Naruto as he clutched his head and scrambled to flatten himself against the closest wall. Muddy sewer water splashed onto him as those chunks crashed onto the flooded corridor, only for the fallen chunks to be absorbed by the ground.

He grit his teeth against the pain and finally understood what was happening; his mindscape was reshaping to accommodate the new seal and chakra. He could vaguely see the walls elongating. The ceiling rose, and with it the metal cage bars lengthened. On the opposite side of the falling concrete, he could make out the cage widening and Kyuubi growing in size, keening as his body stretched painfully.

Kami, his head felt like it was splitting!

Naruto sobbed and lamented the destruction of his mindscape. He squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to stabilize his mind. He hoped his sanity would survive the trauma. He wished for Kyuubi's well-being. He begged for survival. He just wanted everything to be _better_, for both him and Kyuubi who had become his most trusted friend, confidant, advisor, brother, father, colleague, and partner in crime.

Then, after what felt like hours, the quake slowed. As pain receded, he opened his eyes, fearing the damage his mindscape was sure to have suffered.

The first thing he noticed was the soft glow. His vision sharpened and Naruto stared in awe. _What the hell…?_

The sewer was gone. Disappeared. Transformed.

In its place was grass, rolling hills, trees, _a sunset_. What previously was sewer water had become a flowing spring with fish swimming in its clear water. He felt gentle wind ruffling his hair and saw clouds floating in the sky.

How had _this_ become his mindscape? Surely he was dreaming. No one had heard of such a thing happening. He remembered the conversations with Yamanaka Inoichi who described most minds as a single colored expanse of nothing, usually imitating the color of the individual's chakra, with memories and thoughts flashing by. Pure minds, usually children, had unblemished memories while those of people tainted by evil and insanity had frayed or chipped images, depending on the severity of damage.

How could his be a peaceful landscape with memories and thoughts flowing down the tumbling waterfall?

Kyuubi hummed in relief.

Naruto turned to the bijuu and saw him lying behind tall, white columns of limestone, not really a cage – just a barrier between Kyuubi's space and the passage out of his mindscape. He strolled over to the tired fox, past the columns, and rubbed the side of his muzzle.

'Kyuubi?' Naruto ventured.

The fox hummed again. _'Yes, Naruto?'_

'How do you feel?'

'_Peaceful. Stable. Tired.'_

The jinchuuriki's lips curved into a gentle smile. 'Look around you.'

Kyuubi cracked open an eye. _'Impressive.'_

'Do you know how this happened?'

'_You wished, dear friend. You wished for something better, and your mind granted that wish.'_

'Is this permanent?'

'_It is, unless you change the seal again or you lose your sanity.'_

'Then we have to make sure my mind stays strong.'

'_Yes,'_ Kyuubi replied. _'Now let me rest. My chakra should have finally begun to heal your remaining injuries. I will call when I am recovered.'_

'Okay, sleep well.'

Naruto pulled himself out of his mindscape and opened his eyes. He looked around the room – the lounge connected to the Hokage's office – and called out to the man he could see through the doorway. "Sandaime-Jijii."

The old man, who was not so old as Naruto remembered, paused in his paperwork and raised concerned eyes at the boy lying on the sofa.

"Uzumaki-kun, how do you feel?" Sarutobi rushed over.

The boy chuckled wearily. "I've heard that question too many times in the past day. I feel good right now compared to several minutes ago. How long have I been out?"

"You arrived in the office past 9 this morning. It is now nearing midnight."

"Wow." He couldn't think of anything else to say.

"You were convulsing, and your unstable chakra continued to spike all throughout the afternoon. I considered moving you to the hospital but kept you here to avoid an uproar and rumors," the Sandaime explained. "Would you mind telling me what happened?"

Naruto nodded. "I know that Uzumaki Kushina is the jinchuuriki right now, and you might have guessed that she's my mother. When I popped into this time, the two Kyuubis merged. My Kyuubi is made up of only its Yang chakra but her Kyuubi contains both Yin and Yang. When the two merged, the Yin was also absorbed into my body, overloading the seal on my bijuu's cage."

"And I presume you were able to resolve the problem?"

"Yeah, I studied a bit of Spirit Sealing in the past since I'm a jinchuuriki so I came up with a way to strengthen the seal and stabilize the rest of the chakra." Naruto grinned smugly. "I gotta say, I'm pretty awesome."

Sarutobi began to chuckle which gradually broke into a full, outright laugh. "I must agree with you. Uzumaki-kun, I have seen enough to know you are being truthful. I officially reinstate you as a shinobi of Konohagakure, retaining your previous status and rank. Welcome to this Konoha!"

The Hunter-nin/jounin's grin grew wider. "Yes! And Jijii, I'm going to keep calling you 'Old Man' so you have to call me Naruto. Just Naruto."

"I shall do so, Naruto" Sarutobi conceded. "Before you leave, we must fabricate a cover story and find you a place to stay."

"Umm, I think I should change my last name since Uzumaki Kushina is an orphan."

"Correct. What would you suggest?"

"How about Uzuhara, since I'll probably forget if it's too different. And I definitely want to keep my first name; I like it too much. And I'm an orphan. Can I have been placed under a deep cover mission in Kusa, since your team found me around there? I specialize in infiltration & reconnaissance, so that'd make sense right?"

"That is satisfactory for now. Now we must find you accommodation. I think it would be best to place you in the Anbu Headquarters to minimize questioning due to your sudden appearance."

"Sounds great." Naruto grinned and donned his mask.

"Akashiori, return at some time tomorrow, and we will discuss the details of your duties." Sarutobi returned a smile before calling in an escort to take the Hunter-nin to his new home.

"Thanks, old man. I'll see you tomorrow." With that, Naruto followed the Anbu escort out of the office.

* * *

Naruto flopped onto the comfortable bed in the sparsely decorated room.

The trip to Headquarters located at Konoha outskirts had been awkwardly silent after Naruto's first several questions received one-word responses. Once they arrived, he had been allowed to choose a room from the list of uninhabited ones. He carefully chose a sixth floor window room facing the indoor training facility. It was just taller than the facility, tactically providing him an alternate exit from Headquarters.

The blonde stared at the seal containing Kyuubi and leisurely reviewed what had happened.

He had messed up his time jutsu, ended up twenty-four years in the past, doubled Kyuubi's chakra, reinforced the seal, gotten his job back, and acquired a home. He had been incredibly lucky: lucky that it was Konoha-nin that had discovered him; lucky that he had been able to explain without exposing himself to the rest of the village; lucky that he had fixed the seal in time; and lucky that the Hokage had accepted him. He had never before been so thankful for his awe-inspiring good fortune.

However, it had also been bad fortune to have landed in the past in the first place. This thought threw him into a sudden bout of depression. Naruto knew, though he still refused to admit it, that there was no way to return to his time. By landing in the past, he had erased his past; the slate had been wiped clean. It was impossible to jump forward in time, only jump back. You can't jump into what hasn't happened.

And since he had been thrown into a world before he was born, he could no longer take the place of this reality's Naruto. There was a possibility of successfully replacing baby Naruto once he was born, but that was years ahead.

Regardless, he was never going to see his precious people again. There would be versions of them within this reality, but they wouldn't be _his_ precious people. It wouldn't be _his_ Iruka-sensei, _his_ Sandaime, _his_ Sasuke, _his_ Kakashi-sensei, _his_ Tsunade Ba-baa, _his_ Ero-sennin. They would all be baby Naruto's, and even if he did replace him, it would never be the same.

Naruto felt tears collect in his eyes. He wanted to curl up and cry, but what good would crying do? It wouldn't improve the situation one bit so he did his best to hold back.

'_Just let go, kit.'_

Naruto clenched his jaw. "No."

'_It may not help to cry, but suppressing will only hurt you.'_ Kyuubi's soothing voice rumbled from within. _'Just let go.'_

He choked.

'_That's it, let it all out. Let out your grief,'_ the fox coaxed softly. _'There's no need to be strong right now. Your spirit is already strong, so never fear vulnerability behind closed doors. Just cleanse yourself of your anguish.'_

Naruto couldn't hold back any longer. Tears flowed down his cheeks as near-silent sobs wracked his body. He gasped for air and thought of all the times he shared ramen with Iruka-sensei. He remembered the terrible D-rank missions with his team. Trying to peak at Kakashi-sensei's face. Being smacked in the jaw by Tsunade Ba-baa's paperweight. Saving Ero-sennin from angry naked women. Sharing quiet moments with Gaara. The battles fought alongside his precious people.

So many memories which were now mere memories and no longer reality.

It only hit him now that he had lost every single one of his precious people in one single moment, and the pain tore at his heart. All for one _insignificant_ broken Hunter's mask.

Kyuubi pulled the boy into his mindscape and wrapped a comforting tail around Naruto's trembling form. He could only provide warmth and promise of companionship. The fox was Naruto's last living remnant of his past. And they both knew there would be more grief to come when he met his precious people as strangers.

'Kyuu, it hurts.' Naruto whispered.

'_I know, kit. I know.'_

'I want it to stop hurting.' Rain began to drizzle in the cloudy mindscape.

'_I know, and I also know you can overcome this.'_

'But I don't want to forget.' He sounded so young.

'_You don't have to.'_

'Will you help me remember?'

'_I will. Always.'_

'Promise?'

'_I promise. We shall never be apart.'_

'Forever?'

'_For all of your mortal life.'_

'Then what about you?'

'_Perhaps I will accompany you to the afterlife.'_

'That sounds nice.'

'_Yes it does. Now, sleep. I will be here when you wake.'_

'Okay. I love you, Kyuu…'

'_I love you as well, my dear, dear friend.'_

'Mmm…'

Naruto's tremors faded as his breathing evened out. Kyuubi watched over him in the dreary landscape of the mind. He gently licked away the last of Naruto's tears and settled down to rest his own drained body.

'_It will be better tomorrow.'_

* * *

**A/N:** This is the first time I cried from writing…the sadness is waaay more intense when you write than when you read – an enlightening experience *sniffles*

Next chapter, enter Minato!

_May 13, 2012_


	3. Roller Coaster

**A/N: **Thank you for your reviews and support! They keep me going whenever I get stuck. I hope you enjoy chapter three.

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai, **timetravel.

* * *

**Edit:**

To readers: If you don't like my story, please don't read it or tell me you dislike it. I don't go around sharing my hate for everything that's not my cup of tea, and I don't see the point in doing so.** I put up warnings for this exact reason.**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Roller Coaster**

_Crap, crap, crap! You're doing a fantastic job of making good impressions. _Naruto thought contemptuously as he leapt from roof to roof. He had woken eighteen hours after falling into fitful asleep, making it six in the evening already which was a considerably late and rude time to request any meeting with any authority – not that he had cared before. He cursed. This Sandaime hadn't developed the affectionate leniency towards him that _his_ Old Man had. _And probably never will_, his mind cried.

Waking to the approaching sunset, the blonde had eyed his disgusting Hunter-nin uniform before throwing it aside for future thorough scrubbing and slipped into an extra set stored in one of his scrolls. Now heading to the Hokage Tower, he could finally appreciate the beauty of the village bathed in orange light.

Peace.

Everything felt so peaceful. There was no evidence of strife or disrepair like the Konoha in his time. None of them knew of the Third Shinobi World War already building in the shadows. Civilians lived without fear, and shinobi joked about missions. He watched children playing in the Academy playground, so similar to the scenes from his own childhood before shit hit the fan. A tiny smile formed behind his mask.

_I have to protect this._

* * *

"I hope you enjoyed a good night's rest." Sarutobi chuckled at the rude apology tumbling out of Naruto's mouth.

"Actually yeah, I feel refreshed, but I'm having major problems with chakra control. I might have dislodged a bunch of roof tiles on my way here." He confessed sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck with a nervous arm.

Sarutobi nodded in amusement. "Yes, a side-effect of chakra overload. I will place you on post-mission recess for one week. Spend that time settling down and training. I expect a detailed report on your progress at the end of the week. Then, you will be assigned duties depending upon how far you have recovered with your control." The Hokage formed a suspiciously innocent smile. "There is always need for mission filing and catching wayward cats."

Naruto 's expression turned to one of horror. "Please, not mission filing or the cat! I'll work hard so we won't _ever_ need to consider that."

He shuddered mentally. _'Kyuu, I bet ten bowls of ramen that it's Tora's great-grandfather.'_

'_Too bad there is no way to prove it,'_ the sleepy fox replied with a rumbling chuckle.

"I will also need to assess your skills. We will schedule theory and combat exams once you recover. You will also need to be evaluated mentally and physically."

Naruto felt like crying. "Exams! Have mercy…" He _hated_ those exams! He hated exams in general. They didn't sit right with him, and he didn't want to sit for them either. It was a long-standing hate-hate relationship in which he always lost, no matter how many times he tried to sneak his way out.

Sarutobi couldn't stifle his laughter at the poor boy's desperately begging eyes. He had suffered through the same pain and dread when he was part of the ANBU many years before, which was why he was sympathetic to their suffering but felt next to no remorse at assigning those exams. All effective leaders needed a sadistic streak in them to succeed, after all. On the other hand, this boy looked like he needed a little break from life's own sadistic streak. "Very well, I will be lenient this once. This assessment will take the place of the coming semiannual fall evaluations, meaning your next evaluation will be in the spring, eight months from now. Is that satisfactory?"

"Yes, you're the best! Thank you, old man!" The blonde grinned ear to ear, bouncing out of his misery as quickly as he had fallen in. Sarutobi noted with a frown, he would need to ask Yamanaka-kun to perform a more thorough mental examination for this one.

"Let us continue on to more serious matters." Sarutobi's countenance shifted into one of powerful authority. "I met with a frantic Uzumaki Kushina-san earlier today; she confirmed Kyuubi is missing. She reported feeling him being 'warped' out at around the time you arrived in this timeline. I assured her that everything is fine, but she may still be sensitive to its demonic chakra and therefore it will be best for you to stay away from her for now. We must label Kyuubi's condition, as well as your background, an SS-class secret, only known between the Hokage and yourself, and if we wish for another to learn of this information it will only be through both our approval."

Naruto donned his Hunter mask, suddenly becoming Akashiori, the hard, professional operative. He'd learned his lesson on idiocy just two days ago, and it was a lesson he wasn't going to ignore for a long while.

"Furthermore, we must decide how to proceed with your knowledge of our future. While it will be of great assistance in political affairs, I also know the dangerous consequences of meddling with time. To maintain our advantage, we must not be hasty to act." He paused. "How much and how well do you know of the shinobi history?"

"I was required to extensively study both history and politics in preparation for my possible future role in the village. While some details may have slipped my memory, I retain a clear timeline of events, catalysts, and outcomes."

"Future role? Elaborate."

"I was a candidate for the Rokudaime Hokage selected by the Godaime Hokage. However, I know that is no longer feasible. Instead, I could be of better use as personal advisor to the Hokage." Naruto hesitated before continuing carefully. "…I do not fully trust the Council."

Sarutobi immediately understood; Naruto was giving his first hint, warning him of internal conflict or possible treason within his ranks. He nodded gravely. "Your proposition has merit and your counsel will be a valuable asset to the village, but first I must ask you: how can I trust your word?"

Naruto tensed before squaring his shoulders and walking purposefully to stand in front of the Sandaime Hokage, leader of his beloved home.

"Hokage-sama." The Hunter-nin lowered his mask over his heart. He kneeled on one knee at the Sandaime's feet and bowed his head. "I swear in the name of Oinari-sama that I will not intentionally misguide Konohagakure or abuse my knowledge of the future for personal or malicious gain. I will protect Konohagakure from long-lasting strife and destruction to the best of my abilities. I have in my possession a Divine Contract to hold me to my word. Through the contract, I tie my loyalties to Konohagakure's Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen. Only by order of the Hokage in office can my loyalties be reassigned to future Hokages of Konohagakure. I will never go back on my word – this is my nindo."

Sarutobi stared at the complex man in front of him with awe and respect. This man was offering to bind himself to this village by the highest order of contracts, one which would have the Great Fox Deity curse him to hell if breached. His honor and integrity were astounding and Sarutobi could now clearly see why Uzumaki Naruto had been nominated for Hokage-ship.

To respect this extraordinary man and the honor – yes, it was a great honor – bestowed upon him and this village, Sarutobi accepted the offered pledge. "Uzumaki Naruto, also known under Akashiori and Uzuhara Naruto: I receive your vow of loyalty and appoint you as my Personal Advisor. You will answer to Konohagakure's Hokage and only to the Hokage."

Naruto extracted the contract scroll and held it out for Sarutobi to finalize. When both had signed in blood, a small seal in the form of a flame resembling a fox marked his left arm to match the Hunter-nin tattoo on his right as evidence of his dual pledge and bond. From the shadows, Naruto would guide the Will of Fire and eliminate enemies of Konoha.

The blonde raised intense, blue eyes to meet the Sandaime's wise ones and held the gaze steadily, wordlessly communicating his determination.

Then Naruto grinned widely, abruptly shattering the mood. "Sandaime-Jijii, I'm hungry! Wanna treat me to Ichiraku ramen?" His eyes transformed in to those of a puppy dog begging to be fed. "There _is_ an Ichiraku here, right?" He looked mortified by the idea of Ramen Ichiraku not existing.

After a moment of awkward silence, Sarutobi tossed his head back and guffawed.

"I have not laughed this much in years, gaki. You will be a joy to have around. Let us head to dinner and yes, it will be my treat. Worry not, Ramen Ichiraku has a long history in Konoha."

"Great! You better get your wallet ready because I eat _a lot_."

* * *

Naruto was once again lying comfortably on his bed, deep in thought.

Tonight, Naruto examined the seals on his arms. The left held the flame of Konoha and the right held the swirl of an assassin. He had always been proud of his Hunter tattoo, distinguished from the ANBU tattoo only by the differing arm. Now he sported another tattoo to be proud of, although this one would be the heaviest. These marks, simple but elegant, held meanings only understood between those who wore them, but he alone carried the weight of the flame. He feared that he was not ready to shoulder the responsibility, yet he knew he would be ready out of necessity.

He just needed to believe in the flame.

Throughout Naruto's short life, his loyalty to Konoha had never faltered because to him Konoha was his precious people. His loyalty to the Sandaime had also never faltered because to him the old man was the guardian of Konoha, of his precious people. Now he had knowledge and ability to express his gratitude to the grandfatherly figure and precious friends who had guided him through childhood.

This time he would be the guide. Whether it was for the people of his past or for the people of his present was irrelevant. There was so much to protect. The smiles on people's faces were like a balm for his bruised soul, and he had been reminded of the happiness twice tonight.

He had felt contentment in sharing the joy of ramen with Sandaime-Jijii and exchanging stories, several of which he had already heard before but enjoyed hearing again regardless. And seeing Teuchi of Ichiraku had been an unexpected but pleasant surprise. He was so young – only in his twenties! The man was apprenticed to the current owner of Ichiraku, his father Teuji, a kind man who handed out generous smiles so similar to Teuchi's in the future.

Oh, what he wouldn't give to guzzle Teuchi's ramen next to Iruka-sensei or watch Sasuke attempt to eat elegantly.

'_Ramen isn't made to be eaten strand by strand, Teme! That's blasphemy!_' He had shouted only two months ago.

The time traveler let out a chuckle before sinking into melancholy. Those desires would be forever beyond his grasp. Iruka-sensei would never again be his teacher, and Sasuke would never again be his rival. They would never again share the same relationships and connect in the same way.

He growled at himself. At this rate, he was going to fall into chronic depression. If he didn't snap himself out of it, he would hinder his own growth as a shinobi and integration into this world.

Jumping off the bed, he changed into comfortable sweatpants and shirt and headed to the laundry room with his blood-soaked uniform. This would give him something to do. Clothes this bloody had to first be scrubbed thoroughly by hand, and only then could they be dumped into the wash.

Naruto sat before a bucket of water scrubbing angrily. _Anger is good. Better than nostalgia. Much better than grief._ The water tinted dark red as blood melted out of the stained fabric and coppery stench filled room. His Hunter-nin uniform was the favorite set of clothing he owned. It was identical to the ANBU uniform except in color. Whereas the ANBU vest and arm guards were light grey, Hunter garb was completely dark grey, allowing agents to merge with shadows at night and blend into surroundings in daylight. To him, the dark grey represented protection and safety. It allowed him to hide, both physically and emotionally when he knew he wasn't welcome. It also allowed him acceptance among those who may not have accepted Uzumaki Naruto. It was the shield he carried when he was too tired to fight back.

"You!"

Naruto whipped around to face the shout, almost upending the bucket of red.

"So you're the one leaking chakra all over the place."

The Hunter-nin choked on air as a figure came into view. The man had blond hair and bright blue eyes.

Blue like his own.

This was no doubt Namikaze Minato, his father, Konoha's Yellow Flash, the future Yondaime Hokage, Savior of this World, the bastard who died sealing Kyuubi into him.

"Hello, is anyone in there?" The man peered intently at his face.

Naruto snapped out of his daze. "Sorry, what?"

"I said that you're leaking chakra. I haven't been able to sleep for two nights because of it!"

The jinchuuriki took in the image of the man, not sure how he should feel. Here was the man who had been his idol. But this was also the man who was responsible for much of his misery. Naruto may have resolved things with his father when they met in his mind, but he couldn't simply forget the deep scars even when offered sincere apologies and heartfelt tears. Naruto had rarely felt hate, but he often felt resentment whenever he recalled the beatings and hurtful words from sneering villagers. There had been times where he was consumed by resentment from which only his precious people could pull him out.

But this Minato was an innocent stranger. It was wrong to feel anger or affection toward this man who had not yet done anything. Taking a deep breath, he decided to treat this Namikaze Minato as he would any stranger on the street.

But he wasn't ready to deal with this stranger yet!

"I was about to search for you and ask what's wrong, but your chakra faded out before I could. Lucky I bumped into you here. Are you alright?"

"I-I'm fine." Naruto stuttered and flushed at his own awkwardness.

"That's a blatant lie." Minato countered firmly. "Your chakra is crying. No, it's howling. Even shinobi who've lost their family have calmer chakra."

Naruto looked down and began scrubbing in earnest. "Well…"

"…Oh."

"Yeah…"

"Do you want to talk about it?" Minato asked softly.

"Uhh…" He decided the uniform had been scrubbed enough and hastily dumped it in an empty machine.

"It always helps to get it off your shoulders, and I'd be happy to lend an ear."

"I-it's alright. Um, sorry, I'vegottogonow!" After making sure his laundry was cycling, Naruto dashed from the room as if hounded by all seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. He ran six flights at full speed to his room and slammed the door, panicking on the emotional roller coaster that never seemed to end. He slid slowly down to the floor and leaned his head back on the locked and bolted door, attempting the futile task of calming his breathing.

_What a mess._

He had lost his entire world; he lived near his father; he couldn't control his chakra; and apparently his chakra was howling.

I'm_ a mess._

The walls felt like they were closing in and he had to get out of there! Hurriedly changing into his uniform and donning his mask, Naruto leapt out of his window. His dark form melting into the shadows, he headed to the Forest of Death where would be trees and predators to blast.

He needed make sure the stranger with blond hair and blue eyes would have nothing to complain about after tonight.

* * *

Minato swept through Headquarters in confusion. He couldn't find him anywhere. After the incident in the laundry room, he had sat frozen, thinking about the stranger for half an hour until the machines beeped. No one, aside from his enemies, had ever run so quickly to escape him. The kid hadn't returned to dry his clothes, and he was pretty sure he wouldn't be back any time soon.

Partly out of courtesy and a much, much larger part out of curiosity, Minato decided to dry the Hunter-nin's uniform for him and hold onto it for safekeeping. Or he just wanted an excuse to meet to the tortured young man again. He felt like a budding stalker when he checked the roster for the new guy's identity. Uzuhara Naruto._ Interesting name._

By noon, his frustration was about to reach its boiling point. He couldn't feel Naruto's turbulent chakra anywhere in the building or anywhere in the village, in fact. He must have left the village…

That wasn't possible. Hokage-sama would never send anyone so unstable out on a mission. Obviously he was both mentally and physically traumatized. Furthermore, all shinobi required permission to leave the village. Minato doubted the Hokage would have approved that either. There was a third option which was just as impossible: Naruto could have gained control over his chakra. But no one could fix something so out of sync in mere hours.

After waiting three more hours with no sign of the smaller blonde, Minato gave in and made a visit to the Hokage Tower.

"Hokage-sama."

"Good afternoon, Minato-kun. What can I do for you today?"

"Sir, I would like to make an inquiry about a fellow ninja."

Sarutobi arched an eyebrow. "Is that so? And who might this ninja be?"

"Uzuhara Naruto."

His eyebrow rose another inch. "And for what reasons are you requesting his information?"

"He is staying in the room next to mine in ANBU Headquarters. Due to his current lack of chakra control, I felt Uzuhara-san's emotional agony leaking out. Coincidentally, I met him last night while doing laundry, but he all but ran from the room. I may be encroaching on his privacy, but I would like to help him. I cannot comprehend how he retains his sanity."

Sarutobi eyed the ANBU Captain thoughtfully and nodded. "Only because I know you will not abuse this knowledge, I will provide you with the bare minimum. Uzuhara Naruto is a Hunter-nin of one year. Eighteen years-old and very efficient. He returned two days ago from a long-term mission. As you can tell, he has indeed suffered emotional trauma and life-threatening distress to his chakra coils. I fully trust him with my life. You will have to discover anything more on your own. I _strongly_ advise discretion while handling his case."

Minato's eyes widened in surprise at the Hokage's high praise of the elusive Hunter-nin. "Thank you, sir."

"Additionally, he will undergo a full shinobi assessment in a week or two…"

"Hokage-sama," Minato bowed deeply, "please allow me to face him for the combat evaluation!"

Sarutobi smiled. "I was hoping you would say that. Permission granted. Do be careful with him. Uzuhara-kun is a fine young man, but even I do not know the full extent of damage he is suffering."

"Yes, sir. I will do my best to help."

"Is that all Minato-kun?"

"There is one more thing…" Minato shuffled in embarrassment. "I can't seem to locate Uzuhara-san. It seems as if he is no longer in the village."

Sarutobi chuckled. "He is most certainly still in the village. You will just need to put more effort into finding him."

Minato left the Hokage Tower reassured but also feeling like a full-fledged stalker. He only met Uzuhara less than a day ago and was already developing unhealthy obsessive tendencies…

A week later, Minato still hadn't seen hide or hair of the younger blonde. He'd been on constant lookout but found nothing._ Nothing at all._

He fumed when Sandaime-sama insisted Naruto was in the village but wouldn't tell him where. He had looked _everywhere_ between missions. One thing was certain: the kid's chakra was perfectly under control. For heaven's sake, if he, ANBU Captain of the fourth best unit, couldn't detect him, Naruto most definitely deserved his position on the Hunter-nin force which demanded high prerequisites of control. Minato, a confident and talented shinobi elite, only barely admitted the blow to his pride.

Now he was again standing before Sandaime-sama's desk waiting patiently for a mystery guest who was already ten minutes late for the meeting.

"Hokage-sama, I am curious as to who…" Minato began, but was interrupted by a figure flying through the open window and somersaulting into a crouch.

"Hokage-Jijii, sorry I'm late!" Naruto gasped for air. "I got held up by a pack of giant hyenas!"

"Uzuhara-san!" Minato exclaimed, recognizing the blond hair and scarred cheeks.

Naruto froze. "Oh. Hello."

"Right, we haven't been introduced yet." The larger blonde turned to the amused man sitting behind the desk. "Hokage-sama, if I may?"

"Go ahead, Minato-kun."

Minato turned to fully face the younger boy and nodded his head. "My name is Namikaze Minato, age 19, and part of the ANBU force. It's nice to finally meet you properly."

"Uzum…Uzuhara Naruto. 18."

"Hokage-sama told me you've been a Hunter-nin for a year now. That's impressive." Minato praised.

"Uhh…well, your uniform means you're an ANBU Captain, right? To rise through the ranks: that's even more impressive."

"Maybe, but you're good. _Really good_. I couldn't sense your chakra at all! Where were you all week?"

"I was around…" Naruto answered evasively.

Minato huffed. "Well, you certainly made yourself scarce."

Naruto replied with one word. "Apes."

"Apes…apes…you don't mean the Nin-Apes in the Forest of Death…do you?" Minato threw an incredulous look at Naruto's flat stare. "Hah! Then I was right to worry about you."

"Worry about me?" Naruto cocked his head in confusion.

"That's right, I was worried since you went missing for an entire week."

"But…we hardly know each other!"

"Which still means we know each other to some degree, so I'm allowed to worry." Minato stated resolutely.

The corners of Naruto's lips twitched upward. "You're weird, but I appreciate the thought."

Minato's eyes lit up as he grinned. "So what were you doing all week with those giant nin-apes in that mad jungle?"

With a deliberate cough, Sarutobi cut him off. "Minato-kun, you will have time to question Naruto later. Now that we have been properly introduced and brought up to date, we shall move on to the next order of business. Naruto, your assessment is coming up. What progress have you made in your recovery?"

"I'm fully recovered, old man." Naruto smirked.

'_Old man'?_ Minato repeated in his head, directing another incredulous look at the ninja next to him.

Sarutobi, on the other hand, was obviously untroubled by the rude nickname and nodded with an approving smile. "Wonderful! Please submit a written report at a later time. Let us first schedule your assessment for two days from today. Minato-kun will be evaluating you in combat which will take place at nine in the morning at ANBU Training Ground 4. The rest of your assessment will follow throughout the day." He examined the exposed faces of the two talented shinobi for signs of disagreement. Naruto's face had fallen into a frown, clearly unhappy about the prospect of facing off against Minato.

"I will treat the winner to five free meals." Sarutobi added slyly.

Naruto perked up. "Really? Five?"

"Yes. All-you-can-eat."

"_All-you-can-eat…"_ Naruto whispered reverently.

The Hunter-nin grinned widely. "Alright then, anything for my ramen! See ya later, old man!" With a mock salute, he hopped out the window before anything else could be said.

Minato stared owlishly, stunned by the first happy expression he had seen on Naruto's face.

"Minato-kun?" Sarutobi inquired.

"Oh…I apologize." The blonde tore his gaze from the empty window and bowed. "Thank you for the opportunity, Hokage-sama. Enjoy the rest of your day." Pretending not to hear the Sandaime's mumbled complaints about paperwork, he jumped through the window and swept keen eyes across rooftops for any sign of Naruto. The image of the grin warmed his heart, leaving him relieved that the younger man was still able to smile.

_Over there! _He increased his pace.

"Uzuhara-san! Wait up." Minato called out.

The figure in dark grey Hunter-nin garb slowed to a halt. "Namikaze-san." Naruto greeted politely. "Hello again."

Minato landed soundlessly in front of him. "Call me Minato. I wanted to ask if you'd like to have lunch with me. I'll let you choose the place."

Wary eyes flitted side to side as if searching for an escape. "I don't know…I really have to train."

"It's just lunch." Minato pressed. "You have to eat at some point right? So why not with me?"

"…Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you keep following me?"

Minato looked put out by the question. "That's obvious. I want to get to know you better, of course. And I want to be friends with you. You seem like a great guy."

Naruto studied the other's face through narrowed eyes. He couldn't understand why his father was focusing his attention on him. Had he given any reason to be singled out? They only had minutes of contact – fifteen at most! He wondered if Minato was just stringing him along or if he genuinely wanted to be friends. Here was a person who could make friends with anyone he wanted, a person who everyone would love to be friends with, but here he was, attempting the task with the one person who didn't want his friendship, at least for the time being.

When reading only sincerity, Naruto's eyes softened. "Alright. What do you think of ramen at Ichiraku?"

Minato happily nodded his agreement and they were off, running over the buildings silently as one blur in the sky.

Before arriving at the ramen stand, Naruto paused to cast an expert henge on himself, changing his appearance to a nondescript jounin in his 40's. Minato looked at Naruto curiously, asking for an explanation with an arched eyebrow and slight tilt of his head.

"I'm keeping my return hidden for now." Naruto explained. "No one aside from you, the old man, and the director of ANBU Headquarters knows who I am and that I'm back. I haven't even reported to the Commander of Hunter forces yet."

As they claimed corner seats, Minato wondered aloud, "Why do you call Sandaime-sama 'old man'? I'm surprised you can get away with it. He usually frowns at disrespect during meetings."

Naruto shrugged. "I've always called him that." Then he snickered. "I was pretty rude when I was a kid – had no sense of respect at all – and after a few months, the name just stuck."

Minato was ecstatic. The tight-lipped Hunter-nin was finally opening up to him and the concept of friendship didn't seem so impossible anymore.

As they waited for their orders, Minato asked casually, "I'm curious. What were you doing for one week in the Forest of Death?"

"Training."

Minato huffed at the one-word answers that Naruto seemed to be fond of. "Would you mind telling me more?"

Naruto chuckled at the ANBU Captain's frustration. "I was in Training Ground Forty-four doing basic chakra exercises for the first two days. My coils were shot, so I had to start from scratch." Naruto grimaced. "Like tree walking, water walking, containing chakra to specific body parts while doing physical training… On the third and fourth days I worked on ninjutsu. It took me a while to stop obliterating the trees. The next two days were spent playing with tenketsu points of attacking animals, and the last day was spent channeling chakra into physical forms."

"Wow, quite intense. All that in one week?"

Naruto shrugged again, digging enthusiastically into his miso ramen. Pausing between bites, he stated firmly, "I believe hard work trumps innate genius."

Minato nodded in agreement, chewing thoughtfully on his own noodles. He himself had been labeled a genius, but what good would a quick mind have done for him if he merely sat on his ass and twiddled his thumbs at scrolls? "Wait, if you were working on basic chakra control for the first two days, why couldn't I sense you?"

Naruto grinned in triumph and ordered another bowl. "What did I say back at the office?"

"Apes. Nin-apes. Chakra."

"Correct, young grasshopper." Naruto answered cheekily. "I stayed all week with nin-apes so their naturally thick chakra covered my own. Nin-apes have chakra coils like humans do but can't control them at all. They gave me protection as long as I proved I was friendly." Over more ramen, they shared their many trials in the Forest of Death. What was supposed to be an awkward thirty-minute lunch extended two more hours, four more bowls, and two orders of the newly imported sponge cake from Japan Country, Kasutera.

As they exited the ramen stand, the ANBU Captain posed a question about Naruto's fighting style.

"_That_…is a secret." Naruto answered mysteriously with a mischievous smirk. "You'll find out during our fight, but you better be prepared. I'm going to sweep your feet from under you. Like I told Sandaime-Jijii, I'll do anything for my ramen, especially free ramen."

Minato acquiesced with a laugh, happy that Naruto was comfortable enough to joke around. "Alright, fine. I won't ask."

Then, Naruto recalled that he already knew several of Minato's moves and felt discomfort – or was that guilt – growing within him because of this unfair advantage. "Actually, I'll tell you one thing. I'm a master of Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

"Solid clones?" Minato's eyebrows rose in surprise at the seemingly straightforward technique. "Well, I can't wait to see what you can do with them. I'll tell you something of myself. I–"

Naruto waved his hand to cut him off. "Don't. I've heard the impressive rumors about ANBU Captain Namikaze Minato. I just want to make it a fair fight." Minato smiled approvingly at Naruto's sportsmanship.

They strolled around a corner, walking aimlessly, when Naruto saw a child – a child who could only be identified as Umino Iruka. The child no older than six or seven years was walking towards them, holding hands with both his mother and father, chatting happily about nothing and everything. The proud father suddenly swept the boy up into his arms, and the laughing mother handed the giggling boy a new set of child-safe kunai.

Naruto couldn't stop himself from faltering. He made a barely noticeable misstep before steeling his mind to regain control over his body and continue walking nonchalantly as if nothing had happened. But Minato had noticed. He noticed the slight tensing of Naruto's shoulders, how his breath had hitched, and how the henge had rippled for a moment. There was no denying that something was wrong, and it happened when Naruto saw the happy family of three. Minato was sure this was directly related to the loss Naruto had unintentionally let slip in the laundry room.

Abruptly, Naruto's skittish awkwardness returned but this time it was accompanied by thick tension in the air. To anyone else, he looked like any laidback, between-missions shinobi soldier strolling down the street with their habitual alertness, but Minato could feel the subtle turmoil escaping Naruto's chakra control and the clench of his jaw.

"Namikaze-san…there are two days left to the assessment. I should…uh…get back to training to make sure our fight is worth your while."

Naruto shunshin-ed to Forest of Death to cry his heart out.

* * *

Two days crawled by for Minato but passed too quickly in Naruto's opinion.

Following the incident with the child-Iruka, Naruto's chakra control had slipped for hours. He could physically feel his own chakra 'howling', and this time, even the generally lenient nin-apes refused him entrance to their territory. He supposed it didn't matter anymore since Minato already knew where he was, so instead he shredded trees and giant, hostile spiders with angry chakra whips and cried silently in a tight huddle at night.

When the two blondes met up at ANBU Training Ground 4 two days later, Minato mentioned nothing about the volatile chakra he sensed throughout the past two days. He merely greeted Naruto warmly and received a tiny smile in return.

Naruto examined the space around him. There were boulders to one side, a small pond lay on the other, and the rough ground was hard and uneven. He could work with this, Naruto thought as both excitement of a battle and apprehension at facing his father grew.

The Sandaime arrived at the clearing followed by two men and a woman. Naruto recognized the features of one man to be a Yamanaka and guessed he would be evaluating the condition of his tattered heart and fractured mind which had been carefully glued back together by the strongest of his and Kyuubi's will. The others were introduced as examiners for the physical, medical, and written tests and all examiners would act as witnesses throughout the entire assessment.

'Kyuu, what do you think?'

'_As long as nothing triggers memories of the past, you will be fine.'_

'How do you think I'll fare against my father?'

'_I only know your father as he was at age twenty-five. If you fought that Namikaze Minato, you would last perhaps fifteen minutes. However, I sense that you can evenly match the current him. Use your insane luck, creativity and stamina to your advantage. Unpredictability is most effective against one as disciplined as he.'_

'What if something flips a trigger and I lose control? Should I pull out or endure?'

'_If it is a minor loss of control, I will help you reground yourself. If it is something more, I will warn you to pull out. If it is extreme, I will pull you out myself. In your case, loss of mental and emotional control is a danger to you and everyone in the vicinity.'_

Naruto sent the fox a mental nod of gratitude.

"Shall we get started?" Sarutobi laid out the rules. "You have a time limit of two hours. The fight, limited to this training ground, will end once either is unable to fight or unconscious. As this is an evaluation of skill and reasoning during combat, do not aim to kill."

"And the winner is rewarded five free meals." The Hokage added as an afterthought.

"Combat Assessment, Uzuhara Naruto vs. Namikaze Minato. Begin!"

Neither fighter moved. They stood silently, sizing each other with intense, critical eyes. Uncharacteristically, the typically patient Minato was the first to burst into action.

He threw a punch which Naruto fluidly brushed aside and returned with a jab. Minato twisted sideways to shift around the attack but felt something tug at his feet.

A moment later, he was airborne.

Minato yelped in surprise before flipping over and catching himself.

"Hah! I told you I'd sweep your feet from under you!" Naruto was bent over laughing from where he leaned against a boulder.

"How…?" Minato stared, flabbergasted.

"At the very beginning, you didn't think I was just standing there enjoying the view, did you?" Naruto teased.

A light shade of pink dusted Minato's cheeks as he registered the insinuation.

"What's that important ninja rule? 'Look underneath the underneath'." The Hunter-nin explained mirthfully. "I just took it a bit more literally than most."

"I don't understand." Minato frowned and looked to the audience. They didn't seem to have any clue as to what happened either. It had looked like Minato suddenly slipped as one does on ice. "I didn't see you pass through my guard."

"Fighters are often most _off guard_ at the very beginning since they're so focused on their opponent." Naruto explained lazily. "I was lucky that you made it even easier for me. Think about what you know of me and my training."

"You have large chakra stores and incredible chakra control from last week's training."

"That's right. And I told you I spent an entire day channeling chakra into physical forms…"

Minato gaped. "Y…you sent chakra underground! But I've never heard of anyone pulling off something so precise. Maybe Iwa-nin but…"

"I can only do it standing still. The hardest part is finding you with chakra so I can connect with you. I was extending chakra feelers underground, waiting for you to step on one of them. Then I just wrapped it around your feet and yanked. Hard!" Naruto made an exaggerated jerking motion with his arm.

"Ingenious!" Sarutobi exclaimed under his breath.

"Ok, enough wasting time. I have ramen on the line here." This time, Naruto charged and engaged Minato in a full-on taijutsu spar. While Minato utilized the most flawless display of the Flowing Fist style he had ever seen, Naruto's taijutsu looked like a strange mix of Long Fist and an unknown style which left viewers wanting. The fluid, extended strikes were so aggressive that they kept Minato on the defensive, but every now and then Naruto would make a motion that seemed to slip. After watching it happen several more times, Minato reevaluated his opinion. No, it didn't 'slip'; the hit intentionally swept past the target point, but he couldn't figure out why Naruto would incorporate such ineffective moves in his form.

Minato had an epiphany.

He leapt away from his opponent and raised a hand to signal a pause. "Uzuhara-san, I have a question for you." Naruto cocked his head to the side, confused. "Do you use a short-range weapon?"

The Hunter-nin looked at him in surprise. "I use a wakizashi which is part of my daishou, but I lost it in the last mission. Why?"

"You sometimes use sweeping motions which fit into your form but don't cause much damage. I'm guessing you often incorporate short-sword kenjutsu into your fights. Those motions would be deadly if you held a weapon."

"Yeah, I haven't had time to replace it, though. I admit, I do feel dissatisfied with my attacks. I guess my body and mind are still a bit jumbled since I can't seem to get past the muscle memory."

"Wait a moment." Minato dug into the pack to pull out a containment scroll from which he unsealed a short sword. "Here, use this. Since this is an evaluation, we want to see your full form."

Naruto studied the beautifully forged sword in his hands and smiled softly. "Thanks."

They started again, blurring in and out so quickly that the bystanders had difficulty discerning their position. Naruto's taijutsu now felt complete and was certainly more deadly. With sword in hand, the form was seamless between its flow and unpredictability. He somehow eliminated the awkward transitions between a taijutsu attack and a swipe of the blade, often aiming for two hits in one attack.

Minato cringed at his own performance; he hadn't been this pressed in a very long time, especially against a younger fighter. Most of his attacks were countered by offensive moves from Naruto. And that sword! God, he hated that sword. It always appeared at the worst times in the worst places in the most unpredictable manner. Minato may be more skilled, but Naruto was aggressive and wild, sometimes throwing the ANBU Captain off balance and forcing an opening.

It was time to up his game.

"_Kawarimi," "Katon: Endan (Flame Bullet)!"_

Minato performed two jutsu in quick succession, first switching with a boulder at the other end of the clearing, then shooting compressed blasts of fire.

Naruto dodged and bared his canines in an eager, feral grin. "So you're finally adding ninjutsu."

"_Fuuton: Shinkougyoku (Vacuum Sphere)!"_

After forming one-handed seals, the Hunter-nin blew out wind chakra at and around Minato, trapping him with a barrage of bullet-like wind. By instinct, he was able to twist around almost all, but one bullet pierced his shoulder and another scratched the fabric over his thigh.

"_Kanashibari no Jutsu (Temporary Paralysis Technique)!"_

Naruto's body suddenly froze as if restrained by taut ropes, arms glued to his sides and legs refusing to move no matter how hard he struggled. He cursed loudly as Minato charged at him with a chakra-reinforced kunai. Naruto flicked his fingers, the only appendages retaining mobility, in Minato's direction and materialized chakra whips perfected over the last week of training to trap the ANBU Captain in the same manner he himself was. Once the man was contained, he silently formed five shadow clones to surround them and discreetly switched places with one. Academy level jutsu were the simplest but most versatile tools in battle. He and the four unrestrained clones leapt at Minato, ready to deal out a thorough beating.

"_Kaze no Yaiba (Blade of Wind)!" _

Minato snapped his wrist upward to slice at the space in front of him to expel a compressed gust of cutting wind. Immediately, the chakra whips disappeared and three clones dispelled. A fourth clone, instead of dispelling, grunted in pain as the wind sliced deeply into his stomach. That was the real Naruto!

In one smooth motion, Minato unsheathed his own katana from his back. The attacking sword was blocked by the fifth and final clone's kunai, while the real Naruto staggered back from Minato. As soon as the clone dispelled, Naruto yelled for another wave of shadow clones.

"_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

"I'll show you what my bunshin can do!"

A mass of Naruto clones clad in dark grey covered the clearing. There must have been at least two hundred and they all burst into action. Minato growled in irritation at the chaos around him. There was no way to use Hiraishin in this mess without smacking face first into one – or ten – clones. He needed to dispel them in masses, _now_, before they all jumped him with weapons and jutsu.

"_Fuuton: Shinkuu Renpa (Vacuum Serial Waves)!"_

Sweeping his head from left to right while exhaling thick, powerful blasts of wind, Minato demolished all clones in his way. Even as he took a bone shattering elbow to his ribs, he continued the wind attack for another sweep. Satisfied at seeing that only a quarter of the clones remained, Minato shunshin-ed to the safety of a cleared area of the training ground to prepare his next move.

But as soon as he touched down, the ground under his feet exploded.

* * *

**A/N:** Poor Naruto's a bit temperamental right now, but his life's just gone through a complete upheaval so let's give him a bit more time to pull himself together.

Also, please forgive me for the terribly written fight scene…

And finally, I have to get this off my chest: I loathe – yes, _loathe_ – MinaKaka/KakaMina pairings! Just the thought of them together makes me cringe and shudder. I think it's because I'm a huge fan of KakaNaru and MinaNaru, so MinaKaka (semeXseme) is just plain weird. For those of you who like this pairing, please, please don't take offense! Or could anyone recommend one (or a bunch) to try and convert me?

Next chapter: Naruto's shadow clones and his new, chaotic life.

_May 16, 2012_


	4. Psyche

**A/N: ** Thank you again for all your reviews! I squeal with delight at every single one!

This is more of a developmental chapter, building relationships and adding some depth. Plus a bit of fluff at the end.

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. MinaNaru. Time travel.

* * *

**Chapter 4: Psyche**

_Minato shunshin-ed to the safety of a cleared area of the training ground to prepare his next move._

_But as soon as he touched down, the ground under his feet exploded._

Minato was thrown upward along with rocks and debris, only avoiding the full explosive impact because he had been able to ride the momentum of the tail end of his shunshin. He landed gracelessly several feet away only for the ground to explode again. And again. And again, each time he landed. What had Naruto done? Minato's mind flashed through the events of the past few minutes.

Bunshin!

In the chaos of Naruto's two hundred bunshin, the Hunter-nin had set up traps throughout the training ground. Wait no, the shadow clones had set up the traps! He wasn't sure how though, since it wasn't possible for anyone to carry that many easily-accessible explosion tags on their person. The explosive tags couldn't come from the bunshin either, since once the clone expelled, its tools also expelled.

Luck was finally on Minato's side as he landed safely on the next patch of dirt. He studied the ground around him to look for hints on Naruto's trick. _Huh? Are those bugs on all those rocks?_ Minato gingerly lifted one around the size of a coin to examine. Symbols! The black dots weren't bugs, they were seals!

"_Doton: Dosekiryuu (Mudslide)!"_

Minato punched the ground, causing the hard earth around him to rise in a wave flying outward. It looked like the entire field went up in smoke as a hundred explosive seals detonated simultaneously, causing the earth to quake violently and a gigantic dust cloud to cast a shadow over the space. As dust settled, Minato glimpsed Naruto's form lying face down on the ground. He stepped cautiously toward the lifeless body but reared back when another bunch of clones materialized around the ANBU Captain, lining up in a circle before sinking into the mud.

Minato was about to send a shockwave through the loose earth to dispel the clones underground, when the ground lit up in a circle around him. He suddenly collapsed as if weighed down by an invisible force. The clones resurfaced beyond the circle which was now made up of black squiggles.

"Didn't you know?" Naruto taunted as he sat up gingerly from where he had fallen, the right side of his face and body suffered from serious burns and his leg looking mangled. Minato was about to question his well-being when Naruto exclaimed, "I'm a Seal Master and a master of deception!" He suddenly leapt fluidly into a beautiful flip and stuck his tongue out before dispelling with a puff of cloud. A clone? It looked so real!

"Seal Mas…" Even under the heavy pressure, Minato's expression transformed into a playful smirk. "Well, that makes this fight even more exciting," he said while compressing chakra on the tip of his index finger, "Because I'm also a Seal Master!" In his crouched position, he carved symbols onto the ground and pushed chakra into his seal, causing black lines to stretch outward and smudge Naruto's Gravity Seal which the shadow clones had drawn from underground.

Minato bit his thumb and drew another seal.

_Shit! _Naruto cursed as he recognized the new squiggles speeding towards the clones around the circle. They all tried to escape with identical jumps backwards, but before their feet fully lifted off, the lines caught each of them and spread up their lithe bodies. All of the Narutos dispelled except one – the real Naruto who had again hidden perfectly among his clones. The seal Minato used was a simpler version of the Chakra Transfer Seal, and for the next three minutes, every bit of chakra that he used would be sourced from Naruto.

The Hunter-nin barely had enough time to appreciate Minato's seal expertise before he felt a powerful suction in his chakra coils as the taller blonde formed hand seals to activate a summon.

"_Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"_

With a gigantic puff, Gamabunta materialized in the clearing. Minato gaped, shocked that Naruto had enough chakra to summon the Chief.

"Kid, what do you want?" The toad asked grumpily.

"I…I was going to summon Gamachuu with Lower Chakra Transfer to fight Naruto but somehow he had enough chakra to summon you…" Minato stared intently at the Hunter-nin. He felt the pulsating power and fever of Naruto's blue chakra now running through his body, making him quiver from its passion and melt from its warmth. There was an underlying heavy red chakra which seemed to act as reinforcement for the blue. Whenever the wild blue spilled out of the current of the coils, the red would reach out to nudge it back onto its proper path.

Both were so _warm_. It felt like Minato's body was on an intense high, the pleasant heat clouding his mind.

So this was the essence of Uzuhara Naruto.

"Who's Naruto?" Gamabunta swept his eyes over the training ground before catching sight of a small dark figure tensed to attack. "You're it?" The chief toad asked disdainfully. "Hmm…boy, have we met before?" His eyes narrowed. "You feel familiar."

Naruto sucked in a sharp breath. "Familiar? What do you mean by familiar?"

"Like I should know your chakra." Gamabunta bent down to peer closely at the boy. "Like I should know you."

Naruto's jaw dropped and eyes popped. Looking at the toad almost hungrily, he leapt onto the enormous head and whispered something only heard by the two of them. Suddenly, the chief toad released a deafening laugh, almost dislodging the Hunter-nin. "Kid! I'm impressed by your skill and recklessness!" His voice boomed mirthfully, and the ground shook from the force of his large arm slamming down onto the ground, forming large indentations of his webbed hand. "Hey, don't glare at me like that. Bring sake and snacks next time and we'll talk." He shifted his attention at Minato. "Sorry Minato, I won't fight him, but I'll send over Gamachuu." Gamabunta puffed away only to be replaced by a human-sized toad brandishing a sword.

The ANBU Captain stood frozen and baffled and overwhelmed, unsure of what had just happened. Who exactly was Uzuhara Naruto?

"Oi Minato. Minato! What's wrong with you? Pay attention. Ya' want me to fight the little kid over there?"

Minato nodded dumbly.

"Alright! Get ready kid, Chief might like ya' but I'm not so nice." He charged at Naruto who was still grinning ear to ear. Minato's seal had expired and his skin was once again spotless.

'Kyuu, am I still under your contract?'

'_Of course, kit. Shiro has been itching to play. Let him out for a bit.'_

Naruto jumped back from Gamachuu and slammed his hand on the ground.

"_Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"_

Another puff sounded through the clearing. When the cloud wisped away, they saw a beautiful white fox preening his coat. "Naru-chan, finally! I thought you would never call for me," the slender fox, about the height of an above average human, nuzzled Naruto's face lovingly. "Would you like for me to toy with Warty stomping towards us?"

"Yup, Shiro, that would be really helpful. I'll treat you to sashimi later – the fresh, expedited ones from Seaport Village – with extra orders of white tuna." Naruto replied cheerfully.

The fox suddenly shapeshifted into a tall, elegant man with long white hair, dressed in a loose snow-white yukata. "Anything for you, Naru." He dropped into a fighting stance and gave Gamachuu a foxy smile. "Fox Claw Style," Shiro announced softly and slashed the incoming toad with sharpened nails. Gamachuu retaliated with his sword in powerful strokes.

As the toad and fox fought, Naruto turned his attention to Minato whose mind had finally returned to the present and was speeding through hand seals next to the pond: Monkey, Rat, Tiger, Dragon, Horse, Dragon.

"_Suiton: Ja no Kuchi (Mouth of the Serpent)!"_

A huge column of water rose from the pond and launched at Naruto, opening its gaping jaw to swallow the Hunter-nin. He tried to dodge to the right but the torrent struck his side, slamming him into a boulder on the other end of the training ground. His right arm snapped violently, now bent at an unnatural angle and bone piercing the skin. Coughing up blood, he created a clone to support his nearly useless arm and painfully, carefully, forcefully formed seals.

"Perfect time for this jutsu." Boar, Ram, Snake…Horse…Dragon… Naruto whimpered.

"_Raiton: Jibashi (Electromagnetic Murder)!"_

A wave of electricity followed the path of water the serpent had created back to Minato who was engulfed in the surge of lightning and screamed. Naruto cut off the attack to shunshin across the clearing, drawing his katana with his left to aim for Minato's shaking body. As he was about to exact the mock slash to the neck, Minato extended a compressed chakra blade formed from the fingertips of his trembling left hand to point straight at Naruto's heart.

They both froze, millimeters from piercing each other.

Distant sounds of clapping reached their ears, snapping them out of the adrenaline induced buzz.

"That was a spectacular fight, but it seems you have reached an impasse."

The medic-nin rushed over to the two men to heal their severe injuries as they collapsed side by side on the ground.

"Bu…but! What about my ramen?" Naruto panted frantically from behind the man jerking at his crushed arm. A marvelous idea formed in his mind. "Hey, Sandaime-Jijii! I'll make a deal with you! If I beat you in one jutsu, will you treat me? Please? If I can do it in one hit?"

Sarutobi laughed. "For your excellent performance, I had already planned to reward you both. But you have piqued my interest. You seem confident in your ability to defeat me, and you say with merely one jutsu."

Naruto grinned and extracted himself from the medic. "I have an ace up my sleeve, and I'm sure it won't fail to take you – and everyone else – down."

"Is that so, Naruto?" Sarutobi chuckled, obviously not taking him seriously. "Then go ahead and try."

Naruto's face twisted into a wicked smirk.

"_Oiroke no Jutsu!"_

In place of Naruto appeared a naked, busty woman who leaned her chest forward to blow a sultry kiss at the Hokage. Immediately, blood gushed from Sarutobi's and the two examiners' noses and all three dropped to the ground at once.

He gave Minato a puzzled look. _Why wasn't he affected?_

The last standing examiner, the kunoichi, began scolding the Hunter-nin with an appalled expression. Naruto scowled at the lecture, then smirked again.

"_Oiroke no Jutsu: Sexy Man!"_

She never stood a chance against the gorgeous, very naked man with smoldering, lustful eyes prowling toward her like a predator toying with prey. She followed the men into unconsciousness, blood spraying from her nose.

Naruto cancelled his jutsu and stared disbelievingly at Minato who looked amused and unruffled. "Hey Uzuhara-san, who's going to heal my injuries now?"

…_What the hell? Is my father asexual?_

* * *

When the three examiners and the Hokage regained consciousness, they woke to a peculiar scene of two humans and a fox-man.

Shiro, still in his human form, was sitting against a boulder with his master wrapped tightly within the safety of his strong arms. Shiro was glaring at Minato, who was chuckling at Naruto, who was pouting at Minato. Obviously, something had happened while they were out cold.

"Eh hem," Sarutobi cleared his throat to interrupt the three way staring contest. "Well, Naruto, that attack was very…effective," he commented with a bright red face. "I believe we should move forward to the physical and medical evaluations."

In the ANBU Headquarters' medical facility, the medic-nin nudged and prodded while Naruto fidgeted on the stool. He had been ordered to strip down to his underwear, exposing his slim form for everyone to see. For some strange reason he felt most uncomfortable in front of Minato, which was puzzling since he remembered both Kiba and Konohamaru telling him that they used to bathe with their fathers. However, in his case, Naruto had flushed and spun his back to them as he was subjected to more prodding.

"Well, Uzuhara-san, you seem to be in perfect health. Your rate of healing is faster than anything I've ever seen and somehow your body resists scarring. However, I need to question you on your one and only scar, located on your chest. What caused this injury and how long ago did you acquire it?"

Naruto's eyes hardened and stared straight ahead. He clenched his jaw against the memories, both good and bad, resurfacing and almost throwing him back into emotional turmoil. This was _not_ the time to lose control! Having an audience was bad enough, but these people were especially dangerous. Yamanaka Inokazu wouldn't even have to enter his mind to see that he was screwed up, and Minato would probably freak out and mother him to death if he showed any weaknesses.

'Kyuu, I need your help.' Naruto whimpered in his mind.

'_I will take over until you compose yourself.'_ Kyuubi reached a tail between two columns of his 'cage' and touched the doorway out of Naruto's mind. Naruto's grieving consciousness gratefully sank behind the columns as Kyuubi's surfaced. They took advantage of the discovery from years before that Kyuubi could guide Naruto's body as long as he had permission, but Naruto could take back control at any time. It was useful in times such as this when Naruto was close to breaking down.

"It's from five years ago. I really don't want to talk about it," the fox spoke through Naruto's lips, imitating his kit's mannerisms and speech perfectly, "But I promise I'm not suffering any physical complications."

Minato scowled at the answer. He stamped down the urge to whirl Naruto around and take a close look at what they were talking about. A scar over the chest of a body which heals too quickly to scar...an injury which almost killed. The scowl deepened as he tried not to imagine Naruto's dying form with a gaping chest wound. The thought made him almost possessively livid, irrationally so since they were still mere acquaintances. But like he had stated before, he had the right to worry, especially now that he was sure he wanted this enigmatic man to be a part of his life.

"It's really fine," Kyuubi insisted. "Can we move on now? I want my clothes back…" He shifted uncomfortably at the stares from his audience which he could practically feel burning into his back. "Umm…please?" He asked in a timid voice.

With the clothes back on, the group headed to the written exam.

'Thanks Kyuu, I think I'm alright now.'

'_Be safe, kit.'_ Kyuubi gently relinquished his control.

Naruto was handed a large packet of paper, filled with questions on theory, strategy, and all ninja arts.

'Uhhh, actually, Kyuu, I'm feeling _really, really_ sick again. Could you take over?'

The demon fox chuckled. _'No, I refuse to help you with this. I dislike tests as much as you do.'_

'Party-pooper,' Naruto grumbled.

"You have four hours to complete this exam." The proctor explained. "Your time starts now."

The test was grueling, with question after question on everything in a shinobi's life. An hour into the exam, Naruto looked up to see Minato playing poker with Yamanaka and the medic; the Hokage was nowhere to be found. Minato looked up cheerfully and gave a little wave to which Naruto responded a withering glare.

When the examiner announced thirty minutes remaining, Naruto almost wept with joy. It was almost over; thirty minutes until he could bash Minato's head and Katon his body for eating ramen take-out in the room an hour ago, the sadistic bastard.

The last minutes crawled by.

20 minutes.

10 minutes.

3 minutes.

15 seconds….

"Please put down your pencil. This marks the end of your written examination," the kunoichi announced. "Congrats, kid. You made it."

"Yes! I survived! _Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu (Great Fireball Technique)!_"

A massive orb of flame shot towards Minato who only barely dodged the angry attack. It smashed into the wall behind him and blew a huge hole through the wood. Everyone in ANBU Headquarters felt the third quake of the day. _Must be a Shinobi Assessment_, they all thought simultaneously.

"Hey, hey. That wasn't very nice." Minato said, still grinning.

Naruto glowered and formed seals for another Katon jutsu.

"Is that any way to thank the kind person who brought you three bowls of Ichiraku's ramen."

The smaller blonde froze. "Ramen?"

"Yup, ramen, but if you don't want it, I'm sure I can find someone here who'd be happy to ea–."

"No! Namikaze-sama! Please let me have the ramen."

"You said you'd do anything for your ramen, right?"

Naruto eyed Minato warily. "…Right…"

"Great! If I give you these, you'll promise fulfill one of my requests, no matter what." Minato flaunted the ramen in front of Naruto.

The Hunter-nin's eyes followed the take-out box, weighing the pros and cons. "Okay, deal."

The ANBU Captain almost cackled as he handed over the box. "I'll let you know what I want later."

Naruto nodded absently, mind numb from the tortu…exam and only managed the effort to slurp his noodles. Ahhhhh, it was heaven and it tasted so heavenly after braving four hours of hell.

As Naruto patted his stomach happily, the Yamanaka announced the mental evaluation. The demon vessel had prepared thoroughly for this examination. The night before, he and Kyuubi had reinforced his mind, disassembling and patching together memories so nothing would expose his real identity and past. He couldn't change much of his psyche, but by curbing the impact of his excruciating memories, the mind walker would find no evidence to back suspicions on the true extent of damage. He needed to look stable if he wanted to remain on the active roster.

"Uzuhara Naruto. My name is Yamanaka Inokazu, and my role is to examine whether your mind is fit for mission duty. I will enter your mind for the evaluation. Your mind does not lie."

Naruto knew this fact very well, and it was what made this test so risky. In response to any questions asked, his mindscape would automatically transform to express his true feelings. He and Kyuubi had tried to control the reactions through determination and will, but they were barely successful. If anything disrupted his concentration, he would only have one feeble protection left: the false memories which couldn't always be glued together seamlessly.

Then there was the 'large' problem of Kyuubi…

Fortunately, he'd had experience with mindwalkers from his time – Yamanaka Inoichi and Ino – so he knew what to expect.

Without warning, Inokazu entered Naruto's mind. He appeared in a detailed derelict hall (_evidence of more personality than most minds but also neglect_) leading to a charming door adorned with gold and blue (_perhaps a representation of his hair and eyes_). He tried to turn the handle only to find it locked (_security_).

"Yamanaka-jijii, it's not nice to enter without knocking, ya' know," a childlike voice beside him piped up. Inokazu jumped and turned to the speaker, a little put out by being called an old man. He looked upon a tiny Naruto, around six or seven years-old, wearing a wrinkled orange jumpsuit. The mindwalker didn't reply but followed the advice and knocked (_a warning for the inhabitant_). Strange, he'd never had to do that before.

The door reluctantly tugged free from the frame with a creak (_a sign of malnutrition and wariness_), inviting him into a space unlit. "Have fun Yamanaka-jijii. Can't follow you in there but heard it's real nice. I wish my apartment was like that." The boy pouted longingly as he swept his eyes around the hall. Inokazu wondered what he meant and filed the comment for later consideration.

He stepped through the doorway into the dark unknown, but suddenly the space was no longer dark. He saw a blue sky and land covered in grass. A clear river and magnificent white columns.

This mind was beautiful.

Dynamic.

His eyes roamed around, absorbing the breathtaking view. Was this even possible for a mind?

"Welcome to my mindscape, Yamanaka-jijii. Like what you see?" A deeper voice spoke beside him. Inokazu jumped again. "Calm down old man, you'll have a heart attack if you keep shocking yourself."

_You're the cause, Naruto…,_ the mind walker grumbled inwardly.

This Naruto appeared to be his present age, grinning mischievously up at him (_playfulness_). "Go on, you aren't _scared_ are you, old man?" He taunted (_perhaps a prankster?_).

Inokazu harrumphed and walked through the mindscape, in awe at the structure of this mind. No other mind had ever been this elaborate or beautiful. He peered into the clear stream (_purity_), smiling at its freshness (_innocence_), until he saw the fish. The fish were black, composed of Naruto's darkness and suffering (_pain mingling with innocence_).

Then he took another closer look at his surroundings. He didn't notice before (_Naruto had previously mentioned he was a Master of Deception_), but he could now see little flaws scattered throughout. Some leaves on trees were burnt to a crisp. Some patches of grass were not grass but weeds. Among all the species of vibrant flowers, there were black blossoms speckled in between (_hidden from direct view_). Furthermore, the Marigold flower (_representing pain and grief_) and the Cypress (_representing death, mourning, despair, and sorrow_) were completely black. Pitch black (_beyond_ _extreme_).

Next he examined the memories flowing down the waterfall.

He saw happy memories. Ramen at Ichiraku was the most frequent but there were others. Cloud watching, training, traveling, Sealing Arts, the Hokage Tower, Konoha in sunset.

He saw the neutral memories. Sitting in a cramped apartment, failing to learn a new jutsu, D-rank missions, waiting for someone.

Then he saw the bad memories. They were horrifying memories. Beatings as a child, angry accusations of 'demon' and 'monster', being shunned and ignored, a hand shoving a spherical attack into his chest (_so _that's_ what caused the scar_), bloody figures of dead comrades, torture and rape in a dank cave, the overwhelming collision of loss and despair.

There was so much more bad than good (_pain cuts deeper_). Inokazu realized only the bad memories showed other people, though unrecognizable; meaning good memories were foundations upon which happiness was built, while the bad were individual, stabbing, piercing events which created incisions that rarely healed. Just like the beautiful mindscape with objects of darkness spotting the space but never bleeding out to mix with the good.

But he looked around the mindscape again. It was still beautiful. Peaceful.

"Uzuhara-san, what do you fear most?" Inokazu asked the boy watching glumly.

The sky bled red and smell of blood permeated the air. "Losing my precious people." Naruto answered, eyes shadowed by blond hair. Images of corpses flickered on the landscape which had become bare (_empty_). "Being alone."

"What do you consider most important?"

The sky turned grey and cloudy, rain began to pelt down at them in the empty space. "My precious people." Naruto answered with a face twisted in anguish and pain (_perhaps betrayal or loss?_).

"What happened in your last mission?" Inokazu asked urgently.

The rain stopped and a crisp, fresh breeze circled the two (_it started well_). But then the clouds became thicker and the temperature dropped. Rain, thunder, and lightening ripped the sky before the winds formed a hurricane. Trees toppled, the waterfall crashed violently, and the ground flooded in torrents (_devastating failure_). Slowly, the weather calmed back to drizzling rain from turbulent black clouds, but the damage remained (_mourning_). "I was doing so well, but I messed up. I messed up _really_ badly. And I lost everything. Everything but one. Now I have to rebuild my life and protect the new…but I don't know if I can do it right." Naruto sobbed.

"What is that one remaining?"

The flood receded behind the large columns and the damage began to knit back together through the warm red haze which now wrapped around them. "My eternal companion." His shoulders lost their tension and a tiny smile graced his exhausted face.

"Who is this eternal companion?"

"My dear friend, brother, father, partner, protector, and mentor."

"I thought you said one." Inokazu furrowed his brow in confusion.

"He _is_ only one." Naruto insisted.

Inokazu decided to let it go. "How do you deal with stress?

The red haze curled tighter around Naruto like a warm blanket. The damage to the surroundings had been fully restored, and the red mist dissipated as the mindscape returned to its peaceful state (_so,_ _with help from his 'eternal companion'_).

"What makes you happy?"

Naruto gave a dazzling smile but offered no words.

Inokazu knew he would receive no further answers and nodded. He walked towards the tall white columns.

"You can't go in here." A line of many Narutos blocked his way.

"Why not?"

"This is _my_ room. Don't you see the 'No Adults Allowed' sign?" He said defiantly as a rebellious teen would to his parent. He only now noticed the large red sign with the words in a messy scrawl. "Geez, adults these days. Always snooping around my stuff." A fuzzy image of Minato taking his Hunter uniform from the laundry room appeared to the side. It wasn't a memory but a conjured idea of what Minato must have done.

"Your room?" Inokazu asked with an amused smile.

"That's right. _My _room." The Narutos all echoed as one possessive voice.

"Uzuhara-san, I need to examine what lies behind it."

"But you already saw me." They all frowned. "You don't need to see anything else."

"It's important that I see all of you."

"I bet you just want to see my embarrassing moments and show them to Namikaze." Their frowns turned into glares. "Why should I hand you blackmail material? They'll all laugh at me forever."

"They wouldn't do th–"

"Yes they would! Why would you need to see me get turned down by a girl or tripping into mud or masturbating?" One Naruto said indignantly.

Inokazu shifted uncomfortably. "Well…"

Another Naruto replied. "So it's like that? You want to see me suffer through hearing about the Birds and the Bees? Four times! You really want to know?" Naruto didn't give the embarrassed man any chance to interject. "I'll tell you what happened, but you can't tell Namikaze or the old man. Promise? Good. I fainted twice! Then I couldn't look at girls for months. For a few weeks I thought I'd turned gay!"

From the look on the Yamanaka's red face, Naruto knew it would take just one more push. "If you get to see mine, you have to show me yours," a third Naruto said gravely.

The mindwalker sputtered. "No, no. That's quite alright. I believe we are finished here. Thank you for your cooperation." He hurried back out of the door and phased out of Naruto's mind.

The line of Narutos burst out laughing.

'_Well done, kit. You successfully came out appearing sane and probably scarred the man. He will never be able to give his teenage son The Talk now.'_ Kyuubi materialized behind him.

'I can't believe it worked. Isn't he supposed to be part of the Torture & Interrogation team?' Only one Naruto remained. 'I based that whole act off of Kiba's stories about his mom. Do all kids really put up stupid signs like that?'

'_I cannot give you an answer. I know less about human children than you.'_

'I also didn't know I could change your shape by will.' He eyed Kyuubi's large shape with mischief. 'You should have told me before.'

'_You know now, but do refrain from using it without my permission. It was ghastly being a mouse.'_ Kyuubi's mouth drew back in a snarl.

Naruto snorted a laugh. "I get it, I get it. Remember? I've Henged into one before."

Kyuubi gently brushed Naruto with a tail. _'It is time to wake. Your humans are waiting.'_

He opened his eyes to three pairs of concerned eyes. "Uhh, hi?"

"Finally awake?" Minato grinned in relief. "Are you alright?"

"Well, now that you have regained consciousness, we shall discuss the findings," the Hokage announced.

"Wait, what?" Naruto turned confused eyes to Sarutobi. "What do you mean by 'discuss'."

"It is the immediate analysis of your mind for the most thorough evaluation of your psyche."

"But…we never had to do that before!" Naruto exclaimed in dismay.

"It is a required part of this assessment since it is your first." Sarutobi stated with finality. "This is not up for debate."

"You…this…I…" Naruto's head dropped to his chest. After several deep breaths, he looked back at them with hardened eyes. "I accept, but only between Yamanaka-san and Sandaime-Jijii."

"I am sorry, Naruto, but you require at least three witnesses. Minato-kun will join us."

He blanched. "Why does it have to be him?"

"We wish to keep knowledge of you between as few people as possible, especially results of your mental examination."

The distraught blonde snarled. "Fine! Let's get started then!"

The three of them began with Inokazu describing the setting. The other two were shocked at his report and comparison between Naruto's mindscape and all other minds. They were again shocked at Naruto's terrible experiences.

The Hunter-nin looked away, unable to stomach their reactions.

Sarutobi worried about the darkness integrated into his neutral mind but was relieved to find that overall, he was stable. When they reached the results of the questioning, Sarutobi's worries returned even stronger than before, but he understood the cause and couldn't blame Naruto for feeling as such. Insanity was different from mourning, and Naruto was just mourning.

He would be fine.

* * *

Minato sat against a boulder in ANBU Training Ground 4, staring blankly at the damage he and Naruto done to the field. He had barely spoken since Naruto's mental evaluation.

He had known the Hunter-nin was traumatized; it was obvious from the first night. But he didn't expect it to be this bad. To suffer to save those he cared for, and then to lose them all anyway.

Life was cruel.

The entire day had been one shock after another. So much for getting to know the guy; now he had even more questions than before. Uzuhara Naruto was a never-ending mystery. He popped into his life merely one week ago, disrupting his sleep and turning him into a stalker. He had never before lost this much sleep in between missions. There was too much stuff cycling around in his head, and today just added more.

Minato wondered where Naruto went. He had disappeared again, looking exhausted and empty. There was a resigned air about him as the kid listened to the mindwalker expose his secrets, like he had given up caring after having them dredged up one too many times.

Minato studied the evidence of their battle. That was where he first got blown up. Over there was where he trapped Naruto and felt the ferocity of his chakra. And that huge indentation was where Gamabunta shook with laughter. _What was up with that? _He was as clueless now as before.

The ANBU Captain sighed.

Uzuhara Naruto.

Naruto.

He sighed again. Thinking was doing him no good. He wanted to help. He'd wanted to help since the first moment he felt the grieving chakra. But here he was, thinking and doing nothing. What had Naruto said?

"_I believe hard work trumps innate genius."_

Naruto was right. He needed to act if he wanted to get anything done. Minato stood up tall, filled with renewed determination. He gathered what he knew about the elusive Hunter-nin and headed off to the Forest of Death.

* * *

Minato arrived at a wide clearing. From the scorch marks and freshly bulldozed trees, it looked like a recent renovation. Naruto.

His target was lying in the very center, alone as Yamanaka-san had described him to be. He looked so small and frail, on his back, arms placed haphazardly, and staring expressionlessly up at nothing. Was this really the man who had matched him blow for blow? That Naruto seemed to have sunk somewhere into his mind while leaving this soul-weary boy in his place.

"Namikaze." Naruto made no attempt at politeness. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to see if you're alright." Minato approached carefully. He didn't want the him to bolt like he had done before. If Naruto escaped now, there would be no way to find him again. His chakra control now was just that good.

"I'm fine." A flat answer from a flat voice. "Go away."

Minato ignored the request to sit next to him. After several minutes of silence, he imitated Naruto and lied on his back, facing up at what Naruto was looking at.

"What do you see?" Minato whispered.

"I don't know." An even quieter response. "Am I supposed to see something?"

"I guess I don't know either."

Silence blanketed them again. It was silence in nature, surrounded by rustling leaves, chirping insects, the hoot of an owl; but it was silence in their bones.

After what seemed like hours, Minato turned his head towards the other. He didn't comment on what he saw.

Tears as silent as their surroundings trickled from the corner of Naruto's eye and into his hair.

Minato didn't move his eyes away from the heartbreaking but ethereal vision before him. He couldn't describe why, but Naruto looked like someone from beyond this world. Even without learning of his past, something about him hinted that Naruto had seen it all and done it all. Maybe it was the wisdom which occasionally flashed through those eyes. Or perhaps it was the wrinkles on his forehead. Maybe it was the way his eyes flickered around him wherever he was, as if expecting to find something suspicious.

Minato moved his hand to brush against Naruto's, offering silent support and acceptance.

"I should be admitted to a mental asylum." Naruto whispered gloomly. "I think there was one near my old apartment."

Minato didn't answer, sensing there were more words to come.

"I used to think I was supposed to be alone. Why else would people be angry when they saw me?" Naruto was silent for another few minutes. "But then someone told me I didn't have to. I think I was nine."

Minato's heart clenched.

"And then I met more people that said the same thing. So I started believing them."

Naruto turned his head to stare hauntingly into Minato's eyes.

"But I hurt them just by being alive."

More tears escaped those blue eyes filled with self-hatred and regret.

"Then the hell ended and those of us who survived found happiness in each other."

An almost unnoticeable smile appeared and the pain in those eyes was replaced by a dreamy glaze. He was remembering.

Minato replied with a kind smile of his own.

"Did you know? It takes around a month to forge a quality sword."

Minato shifted his head to signal a 'no', unconcerned by the abrupt change in topic.

"My second teacher taught me how to make one." His eyes cleared and stared again, this time sharply, into Minato's. "He walked me through each step."

Naruto grimaced, but the eyes filled with more tears and even more regret. "I still have the katana, but I lost my wakizashi." He took a deep, shuddering breath. "It was so precious…"

Minato waited patiently and unmoving through the pause.

"He helped me carve the sheath." He let out a long, shuddering breath. "But now it will be forever empty, and my katana forever alone."

A sob tore through the clearing; Minato knew Naruto was talking about more than just the pair of swords. He grasped the smaller hand next to his own.

"I want it back, but it's long gone." A strangled choke squeezed between two sobs.

Minato turned on his side and spoke for the first time since the heartbroken boy began his story.

"Can you teach me to forge my own sword?"

Naruto's breath hitched and another wave of tears filled his eyes.

He didn't answer.

But finally after a long, long silence, Naruto averted his eyes back towards the star-filled sky and gave Minato's warm hand a tiny squeeze.

Naruto didn't see the blinding smile, but he felt Minato's gratitude by an answering squeeze. This time the warmth didn't loosen its hold.

Another sob slipped out of Naruto's lips, followed by another, and another until he was unable to hold back the shudders racking his body.

Minato tugged gently on the connecting arm.

Naruto responded immediately by shifting towards the other man and curling up against the warm body, seeking another's heat to ease his loneliness.

Carefully, Minato wrapped his arms around the sobbing, trembling body and held him close, tightening his arms whenever an especially violent sob escaped.

Minato didn't notice before, but now with Naruto tucked under his chin, he could clearly feel how much narrower his frame was compared to his own, though Naruto would never be described as delicate. Instead, his wiry body held incredible strength, enough to counter in a fight the power from his own body, half a head taller than Naruto's average height.

No, definitely not delicate, neither in body nor mind.

Eventually, the sobs died down and the trembling faded. Naruto's gasping calmed to slow, steady breaths. The boy's hands remained clenching his light grey ANBU vest, grip tightening even more each time Minato shifted from discomfort.

Naruto nuzzled into the crook of the man's neck and mumbled softly, "…thanks, Mi…na…to…"

Joyful wonder swelled from within as Minato smiled serenely into the night.

* * *

**A/N:** Er…well, the shadow clones didn't have much of a showing…sorry Narutos! But very unexpectedly, Gamabunta made a surprise visit and may be staying for a while. I wonder how he'll fit (pun intended).

It didn't turn out as I had planned, but that happens from time to time, or always…

Just a thought and a question for my dear readers: I dislike mentioning whether something is right or left. Because, for example, a character may walk into a room, and the images in my head get derailed because the author says the desk is placed on the right side instead of the left which I had always imagined. What's your opinion?

Next chapter: hopefully we'll start Naruto's – and Akashiori's – life for real this time, and maybe some political unrest?

_May 18, 2012_


	5. Red and Black

**A/N:** Thank you for your reviews, and all the commentary! Your feedback is so, so important. There are an infinite number of details in a story that I'll unknowingly overlook, so your reminders and suggestions are truly precious.

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. MinaNaru, shounen-ai, time travel.

* * *

**Chapter 5: Red and Black**

Naruto dreamt of swords and precious people. They faded in and out, sometimes with Kakashi-sensei teaching him how to polish a sword, and other times with Tsunade-babaa brandishing Zabuza's giant Kubikiri Bouchou instead of her jug of sake. Light filtered into the dream-Hokage's office from the oddly large window, blinding him, forcing him to shut his eyes. Behind closed lids, he began to feel something scratchy under his arms and something soft under his head.

Wherever he was, it was quiet with one non-hostile in his immediate surroundings. He slowly blinked his eyes open, squinting in the light, confused as to why he was on a bed. He hadn't slept indoors in over a week, and though it felt wonderful, it was a reason for caution. Moreover, this couldn't possibly be his bed, since his liked to keep his window curtains closed.

Sitting up, he looked around the room. Naruto recognized it as an ANBU dorm room, similar to his own except for the personal effects scattered around the space. He followed the chakra signature of the non-hostile and recognized it as Minato's from somewhere on the floor.

_Oh crap. Minato._

He remembered everything from the night before and flushed in embarrassment. He'd cried like a baby in front of another, a stranger who was his kind-of-father. You're supposed to show strength in front of fathers, right? At least that was what he heard according to the Hyuuga clan. Lee was strong, too, in front of his kind-of-father Gai.

But Kyuubi, his other kind-of-father, never required him to be strong in front of him…

Hmm, puzzling.

Naruto studied the other man's back curiously as he groaned from the floor. Minato slowly stretched his arms above his head and curled his toes. As he relaxed, he turned over to face Naruto and froze.

They were both frozen in awkward silence with Naruto sitting up halfway and Minato's arms still halfway above his head.

"Uhh…" Naruto started to say, his flush from earlier deepening. "T-thanks for the bed. I'm guessing you brought me back?"

Minato unfroze and mumbled sleepily, "You're welcome." Then he furrowed his brow as if thinking hard to remember something troubling. "…Naruto, you barely weigh anything. Are you eating properly?"

"What?" A baffled Naruto wondered if he'd heard correctly, his embarrassment replaced by offense.

"Oh, sorry, Uzuhara-san, I didn't mean to say that." Minato sat up smiling apologetically. "I haven't had my morning glass of milk yet."

"Milk?" Now he was certain his father was losing his sanity. "Isn't it usually coffee or tea? A stimulant."

"Nah, coffee is for lunch. Milk is a healthy jumpstart to a day."

_It sort of makes sense_, Naruto couldn't help but agree.

"That aside, good morning." Minato stood up and stretched again. "Help yourself to whatever you need. Then I'm dragging you to breakfast."

"Well, I should probably go to my room. I haven't been there since I started training."

"Oh, of course! Here's your clean uniform. I'll get you for breakfast in half an hour. Is that okay with you?" He wondered if the older blonde had forgotten Naruto's humiliating breakdown last night. He had been sure Minato would reprimand him about it.

"Thanks, that sounds great…" Now it was Naruto's turn to furrow his brow. "Can you tell me where your room is in relation to the main stairs?"

"Why?" Minato tilted his head in sleepy confusion.

Naruto scratched the back of his head, feeling like a toddler lost on his way home. "I need to find my room…"

Minato choked with laughter. "Uzuhara, we're neighbors!"

"Neighbors?"

"Yeah, your door is actually about two feet left of mine."

"Neighbors…" Naruto stared at the ANBU Captain incredulously and pondered his luck – or in this case, bad luck. _What a coincidence. _"Um, Namikaze-san, I'll just get going, then. Thankyouforlastnight!" He escaped the room, barely acknowledging Minato's comment about calling him by his first name and the reminder about breakfast. Oh god, his door was really just two feet away. Rooms 613 and 614. This just made his life more difficult in more ways than one, as both Uzuhara Naruto and Akashiori. These two personas were supposed to stay separate, but how was he going to maintain that with Minato trying to become his best friend and mother hen from right next door?

Thirty minutes later, he answered the knock on his door apprehensively; Minato smiled lazily down at him, still half asleep. Naruto was finally in a clean set of uniforms sans his dark vest and anything else identifying him as a Hunter-nin. He barely remembered to pull on a sleeved shirt to cover his Hunter-nin and Flame tattoos since even the most expert henge was never foolproof, especially in a room of elite ninja. He knew very well the long-standing animosity between the two Black Ops organizations, mostly caused by the ANBU's disapproval of Hunter-nins' ruthless methods. And as this was the ANBU Headquarters, he was technically at the very center of enemy territory. Naruto didn't want to deal with it this morning – or ever, if he had any say.

The two made their way through the maze-like hallways to the cafeteria.

"Hey, Minato!" Someone shouted. "How've you been?"

Many heads, some masked and some not, turned towards the ANBU Captain and called out to him cheerfully; it was obvious how well-liked he was by all. Minato waved back enthusiastically before grabbing Naruto's tense shoulders and steering him to a particularly rowdy table.

"Good morning, my dear animal friends." Minato gave a lopsided grin. The group exchanged morning greetings and someone, almost routinely, pressed a glass of milk into Minato's hand to chug. Finally fully awake, Minato dragged forward the poor Hunter-nin who was making a valiant attempt to sneak away from the unrelenting ANBU Captain.

"Everyone, this is Uzuhara Naruto. He's new here and staying in the room next to mine." Minato introduced, pushing the reluctant boy further forward. "Be nice to him."

Naruto looked like a deer caught in headlights as people crowded around him to get a closer look. He had rarely been surrounded by such large crowds due to his status as a jinchuuriki and his wariness towards those not part of his group of precious people, and his ugly past only increased his discomfort. Naruto was now in uncharted territory within enemy territory. Ugh, he was _so screwed_.

"Hah! This kid looks like he's about to piss himself." One large man sneered down at the cowering blonde. "Rookie, you sure you're cut out for this?"

"Hey, Boar, I told you to be nice." Minato admonished then smirked. "Uzuhara's been in Black Ops for a year already."

The group was immediately consumed in an uproar, everyone throwing disbelieving looks at the lean boy squirming under their combined calculating glances. "No way… He looks like a fifteen year-old weakling."

"It's true. He's brilliant." Minato confirmed firmly. "I did his combat assessment yesterday and we tied!"

"…" The group fell silent.

"Were you the one that caused the quakes?" Someone in the back asked.

"Um, yeah." Naruto answered uncomfortably, his eyes once again darting side to side for an escape route. This was too much attention, too intense, too soon.

Minato slung his arm over the smaller blonde's shoulders, offering reassurance and encouragement but frowned slightly in concern when Naruto flinched. "He blew up the entire Training Ground 4. Everyone should take a look. Those explosives were wicked."

A masked kunoichi to the right let out a strangled yelp, "I saw it! It was completely destroyed. Demolished! Fried! Flooded! I don't know how exactly to describe it. That was really you?"

Naruto's rubbed the back of his head and offered a sheepish smile. "It wasn't me alone, but I might have gone a bit overboard. But it was against Namikaze-san so it's justified!"

The group broke into laughter, several ninja even patting his back in congratulation.

"I've had to fight him for three assessments, and I've never gotten close."

"Me neither. He's merciless!"

"I barely matched him once, but I was stuck in the hospital for a week afterwards."

"You seriously blew him up? I'd pay to see the great Namikaze Minato getting fried."

Minato's grin grew at the group's acceptance of Naruto. "And what's more, he managed to trip me in the first thirty seconds of the fight!"

The level of noise grew as more people joined the huddle. Minato could feel Naruto's shoulders relax and loosen, no longer looking around as if everyone was an enemy. He had made the right decision to force interaction, knowing that the Naruto right now would never seek anyone out for companionship.

Then, someone asked one of the questions labeled as taboo.

"So where've you been all this time? You've been in Ops for a year right?"

Naruto froze, and his face twisted in anguish for barely a moment before smoothing over into a fake smile. His insides churned and bile threatened to rise. With just one question, these people once again became his enemies. In the friendly environment, he had almost forgotten that this was not his world and that he had lost all of his own friends in Ops when he got stranded in the past. The masks may help him forget, but that was just him in denial.

The ANBU-nin around Naruto, all trained to spot details, fell silent as they saw the flash of pain and change in countenance, all of them knowing what it signaled. They'd seen it in others and many had experienced it themselves. The agony of loss of those precious to you.

"I was on a long-term mission." Naruto answered as casually as possible, knowing that in this emotional wreck, the act wouldn't convince anyone. Minato tightened the arm still slung over the stiff shoulders to remind Naruto he wasn't alone and would always find a friend in him.

"Hey, we need to grab some food. We'll see you all later." Minato pulled his companion out of the crowd to an empty table in the corner.

"Uzuhara, are you alright?" Minato peered closely at the shadowed face.

"I-I'm fine." Naruto leaned away.

Minato sighed. "We've had this conversation before, in the laundry room if I remember correctly. You don't have to hide yourself, especially from me."

Naruto clenched his jaw, something he had been doing far too often lately. "I'm fine," he growled. He'd had enough. Enough of Minato, enough of these ANBU-nin, enough of this overwhelming trauma accumulated over his entire nightmare of a life. He didn't want to get involved with people anymore, no matter how much he craved acknowledgement and love. In the end, he was doomed to lose everything; it wouldn't hurt as much if he didn't have much to lose.

Doomed. Fated. Destined.

He was starting to sound like Neji from all those years ago.

No, he was going to act from the shadows, away from needless distractions.

"Uzuhar–"

"Namikaze-san, I just remembered that Hokage-sama requested to speak with me today," Naruto lied. "I shouldn't keep him waiting." He straightened his spine in his chair and nodded to the ANBU Captain, so tense and so _controlled_. "Please enjoy your day." Without even standing, he vanished silently with barely a wisp of cloud, leaving a dejected Minato to stare at the empty space.

* * *

Instead of visiting Sandaime-Jijii, Naruto returned to his empty room to plan his next step as the unseen protector of Konoha. He was unaccustomed to subtle manipulation, but he couldn't go around beating people up as he had done throughout his shinobi career. If he was to work from the shadows, he couldn't have a face.

Uzumaki Naruto would need to create four personas. One was Uzuhara Naruto, the unmasked Hunter-nin. Second was Akashiori, the ruthless masked Hunter-nin. Third was the Sandaime Hokage's Personal Advisor with no outward presence. Forth was Uzuhara Naruto, Special Jounin of Infiltration & Reconnaissance.

The two Hunter-nin characters would be easiest to play. They were two sides of one coin, day and night. Perhaps he could even eliminate the unmasked Hunter-nin and use the Uzuhara name solely for the Special Jounin persona. That would reduce the number of people he needed to interact with, making it easier to hide his identities and retain his sanity.

The most difficult and delicate position would be the Personal Advisor. He would constantly play the position underneath whatever persona he wore on the surface. He would need to be on constant lookout for details which may change the course of the future. He would have to dance around the Council, the Five Hidden Villages, Tobi, the Sannin, Minato, Kushina, and anyone else who would play a major role in Konoha's success and destruction. There were so many factors to consider and so much risk to manage. To have this responsibility crushing his shoulders was frightening.

'_Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.'_ This was a common principle in science.

Except when meddling with time and life, you didn't know what 'every action' entailed, and the reactions were never equal nor opposite.

He was scared.

But he had to begin now. Change had already begun the second he landed in this time, and he and the Sandaime needed to seize the untamed strings before they moved beyond their grasp. There were an infinite number of strings to catch and pull.

Naruto knew what made being a leader difficult. Leaders had to set priorities, and many times, the 'greater good' clashed with what you yourself wanted. His role as an advisor to the leader automatically made him a leader as well, basically meaning he had to decide who would live and who would die.

He was terrified.

_Stop thinking and do something,_ Naruto scolded himself. Dropping into the chair at his desk, he pulled out a blank sheet of paper and began writing in the elegant handwriting that Tsunade-babaa had pounded into him through torture and Iruka-sensei. _"What Hokage writes to the Daimyou in chicken scratch?"_ was what she had yelled before dumping him a huge pile of her paperwork and proceeded to take a nap.

Naruto listed all that he knew of the next several years, limiting himself to six years, ending at the day Tobi summoned Kyuubi and Uzumaki Naruto was born. That had marked the end of an era which had set in motion the disastrous events of the following eighteen years. If he could eliminate the major catalysts and those responsible, much of the destruction Konoha had suffered could be avoided.

He worked straight through lunch and finished right after dinnertime. It was only a rough draft, but that was enough for now. The stack of sheets now bound by five layers of security seals contained the beginnings of a conspiracy, and Uzumaki Naruto was the one orchestrating it.

Taking the next step, Naruto pushed chakra into his Flame seal to contact the Sandaime and request a secret meeting as Personal Advisor to the Hokage. Seconds later, the seal warmed, signaling approval.

It was time.

From this moment on, he was Hokage's PA first, and everything else was secondary.

* * *

"Hokage-sama, thank you for meeting with me on such short notice." Akashiori materialized in front of the Sandaime's desk. "I felt it prudent to commence our preparations for coming times as soon as possible."

Sarutobi placed his elbows on the desk and set his chin on his clasped hands. With sharp eyes, he took in the deadly ninja positioned in front of him wearing the Hunter-nin uniform and mask. "Akashiori, I have prepared something for you for use as my Personal Advisor. I am in agreement that you should keep your identities separate, especially this one."

He reached into a hidden compartment to pull out three objects. The first was a folded uniform, design not yet discernible, but he could see it was made from a light fabric of complete black. The second object was an equally black cloak to protect him from prying eyes. The third and final object, presented by a pair of steady hands but accepted by a pair of hands trembling almost unnoticeably, was a mask of black matte porcelain.

After a moment of silence, Sarutobi spoke again. "You will be addressed as the Haikage, the Shadow of Ashes of Konohagakure, fitting for one who will operate unknown and unseen behind the Hokage, the Fire Shadow."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." Akashiori dropped to a low bow before straightening and presenting the Sandaime with an object of his own. "This collection of notes contains the historical events of the next six years. It is currently bound and sealed, only accessible by myself for the sole reason that we have not yet determined our strategy for what is frankly referred to as 'meddling with time'."

Sarutobi stared down at the blank cover, rolling ideas back and forth within his mind. When he looked up several minutes later, the man in front of him was no longer Akashiori but the Haikage in full uniform with the mask positioned over his face and the cloak hanging over an arm. His entire body was encased in black, similar to the Black Ops uniforms but with full sleeves and closed toed shinobi-sandals, and Sarutobi knew that underneath the porcelain mask was another cloth mask covering the three scars on each cheek. The Sandaime smiled proudly before holding out the last piece of cloth with which he covered his bright hair, leaving blue eyes as the only distinguishable features.

"Haikage-kun, now we are ready to begin."

* * *

Naruto returned to his room late that night, exhausted and hungry from a full day of non-stop work. He had forgotten to eat after the breakfast debacle, instead utilizing all of his angry energy on protecting Konoha. The meeting with the Hokage had been grim as he gave the Sandaime a rundown of the future. He thought back on the first issue he had raised.

"_I am certain you have been informed of the skirmishes along the borders, yes?"_

_Sarutobi nodded. "There has been an increase in frequency over the past several months. I have begun to send teams to investigate, such as Team 21 which discovered you, but the incidents have been minor."_

_Haikage pursed his lips. "There is never a clear-cut beginning to any war, Hokage-sama."_

_The Sandaime drew a sharp breath. "War, you say?" At Naruto's sharp nod, he dropped his face in his hands, lost in recollection, and did not move for a long time. The younger man waited patiently as a fellow war veteran, understanding the horrors he must be recalling._

"_I have lived through two Shinobi World Wars, Haikage-kun." He directed haunted eyes across the room. "In the first, I was a participant. In the second I led Konoha to battle as the Sandaime Hokage. A general must be sure and ruthless to lead his army to victory, but with every fallen subordinate, I only felt pain mounting in my heart."_

"_Now you hint at a third." His defeated eyes returned to the Haikage's half-masked face. "I feel as if I have aged a decade in a mere ten minutes."_

_The man in black said nothing, knowing it would not be the last time the elder would feel as such._

"_How much time do we have?"_

"_Two and a half years at most before it is officially recognized as a war."_

_Sarutobi straightened his spine. "Then we must move swiftly. There is much to be done."_

The two Kages had decided to unseal Haikage's notes. Even after reading the horrifying truths, it was unnecessary to remind each other that not everything could be changed and not everyone could be saved.

_All you can do is protect those who are precious to you, like you've always done. This time it is Konoha as one entity._

Some events, like the Third War, were unavoidable. Not only was it almost impossible to separate Konoha from the decline of all Five Great Countries, but the treaties and alliances formed as a result of the war were crucial to Konoha's future peace. They could only reduce the casualties and possibly shorten the duration of the war.

As the meeting concluded, Naruto had raised the request to eliminate the Hunter-nin Uzuhara Naruto persona. He had laid out the benefits and drawbacks, arguing that having too many identities would risk exposure of the entire operation, only to be told that his placement within the ANBU Headquarters had a purpose.

"_You cannot deny that you are currently emotionally stunted, Naruto," Sarutobi replied. "As Uzuhara Naruto within ANBU Headquarters, you will have the chance to interact with people of similar experiences and caliber. The Hunter-nin Corps lacks a definitive 'headquarters' since they have fewer agents and prefer secrecy even among ranks. The Hunter-nin lounge and office in the Hokage Tower will not be enough for you. However, I will reconsider after the results of your next Shinobi Assessment."_

Naruto could not disagree with the logic.

He groaned in dismay. He was _starving_, but there was nothing open in the village at this time of the night except for bars. He would have to decide between the cafeteria and the Forest of Death's rabbits but neither seemed appealing.

With a heavy sigh, he changed into something comfortable and ventured out of his room. He didn't encounter anyone in the halls, but as he neared the cafeteria he could hear voices and sounds of movement from beyond the entrance. Naruto strolled into the room as inconspicuously as possible, but he had gained too much fame that morning to be ignored by others.

"Uzuhara, right?" A tall man with some sort of canine mask approached. "The rumors say you tied with Namikaze-san in a fight."

Naruto nodded warily.

"Don't let it get to your head, kid," the man sneered down at him. "Namikaze-san may like you, but you haven't convinced everyone. You better keep out of our way if you know what's good for you, _Rookie_." Then the man sauntered off, leaving Naruto with the thought that humans just weren't worth it.

'_Kit, do not lump him in with all humans.'_

'But he can be lumped in with 'most humans' along with the villagers who hate me.'

'_There are good humans as well.'_

'Like who, aside from Sandaime-Jijii and Ichiraku owners?'

'_You forget that although you have lost your precious people from our proper time, they still exist in this present and will grow into good humans.'_

'That doesn't mean humans are worth interacting with.'

'_What about your future father? There is also the mindwalker, as well as the man from this morning who invited you to a drink.'_

'I don't _want_ to deal with my father!'

Kyuubi did not reply.

"Hey, Uzuhara-san." Naruto flinched at the touch on his shoulder.

Well, speak of the devil…

Naruto reluctantly turned to face Namikaze Minato standing behind him. "Yes, Namikaze-san?" Naruto did his best to keep the irritation out of his voice.

"I'd like to apologize for this morning. I overstepped my bounds; let me make it up to you, please." Minato looked truly repentant, evident from the miserable expression and hunched posture.

_Gloomy doesn't suit him_, Naruto couldn't help thinking. This man had been sincere in everything he'd done in the short time they had known each other, and this morning wasn't even his fault. It was impossible to remain angry. "Forget it, Namikaze-san. It wasn't your fault, and it really isn't a big deal. I just blew it out of proportion in my bad mood so there's nothing to make up for. I'm the one who should apologize."

A bright smile grew on Minato's lips as he sighed in relief. "I thought you'd hate me forever..."

Naruto's own lips quirked into an amused half-smile.

'_See kit, here is a human who is worth your efforts.'_ The fox sent him a mental smile.

He hadn't felt this calm since he'd arrived. 'You're right, Kyuu. I've been forgetting the goodness in people. The old man was right about having me live here.'

"Well, Namikaze-san. If you insist on making it up to me, could you show me the path to food? I haven't eaten anything today."

Minato grabbed Naruto's shoulders as he had done in the morning and again steered him across the room. "So, you go through here and you'll see the food displayed over there. Both hot and cold food is always available since there isn't a set schedule for ANBU mission departures or returns. There's always a hungry mouth," he grinned.

With a nod of thanks, Naruto piled food on his plate, very pleased at the selection. The two sat opposite each other at a table as he devoured his meal.

"Are you going to just sit there and watch me eat?" Naruto asked between bites.

"I've been thinking about the request you owe me for the ramen yesterday." Minato chuckled at the fearful expression forming on the younger blonde's face. "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. I just want you to call me by my first name from now on, and without any honorifics."

"Er…that's it?"

"Yeah, that's it. You kept ignoring me when I asked before, so with this you can't back out." At that moment, Minato looked like the cat that got the cream. He was grinning triumphantly, very pleased with himself. "Now, repeat after me. Mi. Na. To."

Naruto glared at the smug bastard. "…Mi. Na. To."

"Very good, now string it together. Minato."

The Hunter-nin now looked like he wanted to set the man on fire with his eyes. "Minato." He grit out.

"Yes! Now say it again!"

"Minato, I'm going to gut you." Naruto growled. "Then, _Minato_, I'm going to feed you to the Inuzuka dogs."

The ANBU Captain threw his head back and laughed, loud enough for nearby shinobi to look their way in amusement.

'I take it back. You were wrong, Kyuu. This guy is definitely not worth it.'

Kyuubi chuckled. _'You are just being stubborn.'_

After Minato calmed, though a grin remained, he led Naruto out of the cafeteria with a small bounce to his steps. "What are you doing tomorrow night?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"Do you play poker?"

"I have…but I don't like to since I usually lose, even with my incredible luck." At Minato's questioning tilt of the head, Naruto elaborated. "I sometimes call out my fox summons for fun, and they always insist on playing poker. And you know how foxes are tricksters, right? No matter how lucky I am in casinos or with the lottery, I can't win against them. I've never caught them cheating either – trust me, I've checked many times – but somehow, if I have a flush, they'll have a straight flush."

Minato broke out into laughter again. "Well, you don't have to worry about that. Friday nights are Poker Nights at Headquarters. You have to join us. There's a minimum buy-in, but the money and prizes are pretty good and even if you don't win, it's worth the good time."

Naruto hesitated, not sure if he could handle another crowd like this morning.

'_Kit, at least give it a try.' _Kyuubi added his own thoughts. _'You can leave at any time.'_

"…Alright," he agreed cautiously.

"Great, it's at eight, after dinner, and runs pretty late. We'll go straight after we eat." They arrived at their rooms. "Well, good night. Oh, and let me call you by your first name." Minato gave a hopeful smile.

Naruto shrugged. "Sure. Good night."

He entered his room without waiting for Minato's response, feeling slightly embarrassed at how easily he had given in when just that morning, he had resolved to withdraw from society. _Looks like I'm stuck here for the next eight months; I might as well make it pleasant._

As he shut his door, Naruto noticed a scroll sitting in his inbox. _A mission,_ Naruto thought gleefully. He had been itching for something other than training. A quick glance informed him Akashiori would depart at six the next morning to hunt a rogue Uchiha heading towards Kumogakure. The estimated duration was two days, and as by Hunter-nin protocol, he was to retrieve the head and eliminate the body.

The Hunter-nin frowned. He'd just agreed to Poker Night, but with this mission there was no way for him to participate. Naruto sighed tiredly. Although he was excited about this mission, he was also disappointed in missing the event and even more disappointed at having to void the decision he had finally made to mingle with people. It was going to take a lot more effort to gather his courage the next time.

Naruto knocked on his neighbor's door, feeling a little guilty about turning down Minato's invitation. He had been so sincere and excited…it felt like he was preparing to kick a puppy.

"Hey, sorry to bother you, Namik…Minato." Naruto said awkwardly as the ANBU Captain answered the door. His father – and new friend – looked…he looked the same in casual clothing as in uniform. Whereas most Black Ops agents changed personas behind the uniform and mask like he himself did, Minato exuded the same air of kindness but also the same powerful presence. It was like Minato was his true self both on and off duty, and that was an impressive feat. Many ANBU-nin and Hunter-nin lost their sanity if they didn't separate their minds.

He gave a small, apologetic smile before lying to the larger blonde that the Hokage had requested to meet the next night to discuss his progress and assessment reports in detail, and because of that he had to cancel their plans. "Um, I'm really sorry. But I'll make it up to you. I'll agree to go to the next thing you want to drag me to as long as I'm free."

"That's alright, Naruto. I was about to visit you to apologize myself." Minato said just as apologetically if not more so. "I just received a mission assignment for tomorrow, so I won't be able to join either. How about we both take each other to something? But you can't choose ramen, because for you, ramen seems like a given on any outing."

Naruto nodded in relieved agreement, glad that he got out of kicking the puppy. _Lucky, _he grinned to himself.

* * *

At six next morning, Naruto stood in the Hokage's office to receive authorization for departure. It was strange since Hunter-nin usually left for missions after checking in with the Hunter-nin Corps Commander in their lounge and office, but this morning the Commander told him he was to first see the Sandaime.

"Akashiori, as this is your first mission, I will brief you myself. Your mission is a routine elimination. The target is Uchiha Satoru, jounin level shinobi," the Hokage repeated the information already provided. "However, for the same reason that this is your first mission, I will need to assess your performance in the field."

"You will be accompanied by a fellow shinobi who will evaluate you." At this, Naruto felt an uneasy sense of foreboding. "Unfortunately, all other Hunter-nin are occupied, and I would have assigned this mission to a jounin team, but seeing as you are available, I decided to take this opportunity to kill two birds with one stone."

_No way…he wouldn't…_

"Your partner, Cheetah, has been informed that he is to evaluate a new recruit, only stepping in if necessary."

_Cheetah. Meaning ANBU…he didn't…_

A bit of Uzuhara Naruto slipped through from behind the Akashiori mask. "Old man, I just told you yesterday about the risk of exposure! And if you've assigned who I think did, I'm going to smash something. When I put in that request to leave ANBU Headquarters, it was mostly because of _him_."

Kyuubi howled in laughter.

"I am confident in your ability to keep your identity a secret." Sarutobi smiled serenely.

_Shit, he did…_

"Consider it an evaluation for your skills in deception and infiltration. In any case, you will need to be evaluated before becoming Tokubetsu Jounin. If you complete this mission with your cover intact, I will place you on stand-by for infiltration missions."

Naruto growled audibly and sent the still-laughing Kyuubi a mindscape stormcloud.

"Fine. But when I get back, you're treating me to ramen on Ichiraku's Annual Super Meat Day, and I expect you to treat Shiro to the sashimi I promised him."

"That will not be a problem." Sarutobi agreed as he watched the masked shinobi tie a piece of cloth over his hair. "Your partner should be waiting outside this office. I wish you good hunting, Akashiori."

With a final death glare from flashing blue eyes, Akashiori stalked angrily out of the room.

* * *

**A/N:** Hmm, a shorter chapter. I kinda got stuck somewhere in the middle. And for Minato's mask...is it ok? Or is it too...erm...I'm not sure what I'm trying to say.

Phew! I finally have the timeline of pre-Kyuubi history written out in detail with everyone's age and stuff. It's should be mostly accurate, give or take two years. The only thing I've intentionally changed is Minato's real age, making him around 5 yrs younger than in canon. Now I can start thinking about the political _junk_, not that I'm any good at politics (I suck at it like Naruto sucks at genjutsu…).

I should just let Naruto beat everyone up like before. _Now, that is a __**fantastic**__ idea_ :P

Next chapter: Mission and maybe/perhaps/possibly Kushina?

_May 20, 2012_


	6. Rattled

**A/N:** I ended up **changing Minato's mask to Cheetah** since Panther just didn't fit. 'Panther' was a random pick out of my ass – the first thing I thought of that wasn't one of those generic masks (Dog, Cat, Wolf, etc.). Cheetah kinda makes sense, right?

This chapter was a bit difficult to write. I think I'm much better at fight scenes than the emotional stuff and humor. I don't know how to do transitions and proper emotional development; I only know how to make Naruto suffer psychological trauma…

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. MinaNaru, shounen-ai, timetravel.

* * *

**Chapter 6: Rattled**

The man running in front of Minato had puzzled him from the very moment they met. The Hunter-nin had stormed out of Hokage-sama's office, looking as if he wanted to destroy something – anything – with those tightly clenched fists. The ANBU Captain under the Cheetah mask had wisely said nothing to the fuming figure in the dark grey Hunter-nin cloak, opting to give a simple nod in greeting before allowing the man to lead the way. As they approached the gate, he had visibly forced himself to halt and stiffly introduced himself. Minato had been told that Akashiori was the Hunter-nin's code name, but Akashiori had introduced himself as Akamaki and asked to be addressed as such. When asked why, Akamaki had shrugged and simply said in a gruff voice, "Only the dead know my true name."

Even more puzzling was that Akamaki didn't seem like a new recruit.

First of all, Minato realized immediately after the Hunter-nin calmed that he hadn't felt the man's chakra at all. Not once did he detect even a leak between the transitions of fury to irritation to resignation to indifference. Even the best of new recruits slipped during times of such anger. Secondly, the way the man moved was that of a seasoned shinobi. Though the cloak hid his body, he could practically feel the control and lack of recoil in his movements from tree to tree. He wouldn't call it grace, but there was a fluidity which vaguely reminded him of an untamed animal. Thirdly, he was an extremely skilled tracker. Akamaki barely paused to identify new clues to the target's path and location. Sometimes he would curiously tip his head back as if to sniff the air from under his mask or tilt his head to the side as if to listen for something inaudible. Once he caught a 'scent,' Akamaki would cover miles without stopping until he found it sensible to take another quick sniff. Minato also caught how Akamaki's sharp eyes never stopped flitting around, searching for visual clues to the target's movements.

These attributes all pointed towards an excellent shinobi with great potential as a Hunter-nin, but the puzzling thing was that Akamaki was _too_ excellent to be a new recruit. When the speed, stamina, control, and survival expertise were combined, the final product was an exceptional, veteran agent. Perhaps somewhat animalistic, but that only added to his efficiency.

"Cheetah-san, let us take a short break here to eat and rest before resuming the chase. I will not be stopping again until sunset. It is best now if we distance ourselves so the food will not taint the trail," Akamaki told him in a detached voice before heading off to the side.

Minato nodded approvingly. Many trackers forgot that food, no matter how bland and odorless, still left traces which could mix with the trail and their senses, possibly sending them off-course.

They said nothing as they ate ration bars. Minato reviewed the information he had gathered, which all seemed to contradict the fact that Akamaki, or Akashiori, was supposed to be green. The Hunter-nin in front of him knew what he was doing as if he had done it a hundred times before.

There was also one comment Akashiori had made that piqued Minato's interest. "Akamaki-san, what did you mean by only the dead knowing your real name?"

Minato could somehow tell the man was smiling behind his mask, and amusement in the gruff voice confirmed it.

"It is just as I said. Until my targets are about to die, they will know me by my false name Akamaki, which people mistaken my mask for. I will correct their knowledge only moments before I exact the final blow. It makes the game more interesting, does it not?"

The ANBU Captain was both intrigued and disturbed. His eyebrows lifted unseen. "I mean no offense, but isn't it pointless if the opponent dies and takes the knowledge to their grave?"

Akamaki nodded but explained. "It is a test for myself to see if my competency in assessing the situation and my skills have improved. It is also a form of…training for control of emotions and attentiveness during a battle where the mind often becomes clouded. While bloodlust can heighten awareness, exhilaration and frustration often cast a veil over judgment of ability and perception. It is imperative to fully understand your body and mind during both a training match and a life-or-death fight."

Minato felt like a student rather than the superior; he may be superior in rank, but in comparison, he felt like there was a significant gap in maturity. He suddenly had a strong urge to know how old the man was and why he was considered a new recruit.

"However, the occasional prey does escape. Those times will be when the test results hold most weight since I will need to ensure that their escape does not occur after I deem it time to expose myself. This is why my public identity in the world will be Akamaki and not Akashiori."

"If I may ask, what caused you to be so angry this morning?"

"Hokage-sama can be a sadistic man." Akamaki chuckled. "Beneath that kind exterior is a cunning dog who likes to meddle in the worst ways, and he decided to mess with me even after I warned him not to."

Another puzzle presented itself. The new recruit spoke of the Hokage as if they were equals. Could they perhaps be related? Or teacher and student? Long-time friends?

They resumed their run in silence, but it was much more pleasant than the first half of their journey. Though Minato wasn't sure how he knew, Akamaki didn't seem as uncomfortable with him anymore. He couldn't see any difference in his movements, but the man appeared lighter in an indescribable way. Perhaps it was just his imagination.

Abruptly, the Hunter-nin stopped. Now there was urgency to his movements in evaluating his surrounding environment.

"Shit, Cheetah-san, we must increase our speed. It seems our target has acquired another pursuer – Kirigakure if my senses are correct. They are wary of kekkai genkai and have good reason to pursue the Uchiha."

The pace Akamaki set was incredible; it was close to rivaling his own speed on a chase, but Minato was one of the fastest shinobi in Konoha. The trees were literally blurs, and the two men seemed to almost rocket through the air without taking any steps. The ANBU Captain wondered how long Akamaki would be able to keep up the same pace before suffering from exhaustion.

But two hours later, the man didn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon; he wasn't even winded and had increased the pace a little more. This Hunter-nin had the greatest stamina of any shinobi he had ever met other than himself, but again, speed came easily to Minato as his mask indicated and allowed him to keep up with no problem.

"We're closing in on the Kiri-nin, but they've almost caught up with the Uchiha as well. We mustn't allow the Sharingan fall into their hands. We~ recently found that Kiri~ has been researching counters for kekkai genkai." Only towards the end of Akamaki's rushed explanation did Minato hear them. Two of the Hunter-nin's breaths had shuddered before he continued talking smoothly. _He's feeling it, _Minato realized. The man was feeling the strain – though it didn't seem like much – of their last two hours of full-out sprinting but was doing an excellent job of hiding it. He wondered how the Hunter-nin would fare in the fight to come.

"There." Akamaki whispered and adjusted his path onto higher branches. When they were almost on top of the three Kiri-nin, the Hunter-nin silently dropped down behind them and slammed a senbon deep into one of the men's necks. Only when the Kiri-nin gurgled and dropped dead did his companions notice Akamaki's deadly presence.

Minato stood back and watched him work.

"Who are you?" As they came to a halt, the two shinobi turned sharply to the man in the dark grey cloak.

"Guess." In that single word, Minato heard the playful smirk behind the red swirled mask.

"What are you after?" The Kiri-nin snarled.

Akamaki gave an exaggerated sigh. "No more guessing? Fine. I'm Akamaki, and I'm after _you–_" The last word was accentuated with the blur of his body lunging forward.

"_Kaze no Yaiba (Blade of Wind)!"_

Akamaki formed a barely-visible chakra sword on two fingers and slashed at the man to his right. The man cried out in pain as a precise gust of wind sliced across his chest, but then exploded into water. _Water clone._ His senses detected the man on a branch above and began to let fly another wind slice but was interrupted.

"_Suiton: Teppoudama (Gunshot)!"_

Condensed balls of water flew at Akamaki from the Kiri-nin positioned to his back left. He dodged the balls but watched in fascination as they drilled into tree trunks like bullets.

"So you guys aren't bad. Nice teamwork there," Akamaki complimented. With pure speed, he appeared behind the Kiri-nin who had performed the jutsu and jabbed his spine with a chakra enhanced elbow. The man screamed at the backbreaking impact but yelled out to his fellow Kiri-nin before dropping paralyzed to the ground, "Wide range! Speed! Trap!"

"_Suiton: Mizuame Nabara (Starch Syrup Capturing Field)!"_

The remaining Kiri-nin seemed to understand immediately. He dropped down from the tree to form hand seals and shoot out a sticky liquid which splashed over the area of battle, trying to capture Akamaki's feet and inhibit his mobility. Akamaki leapt out of the way as the liquid sloshed over the paralyzed Kiri-nin.

"Sorry, that might have worked if we weren't in a forest." At the end of the leap, he had stuck to a tree with chakra and observed the liquid gunk on the ground. "Hmh! You Kiri-nin are so fond of your Suiton jutsus…" the Hunter-nin grumbled before Minato saw a glint of defiance in his eyes. "Well, I can do water too!"

"_Suiton: Suihachi (Water Wave Palm)!"_

A powerful jet of water shot out of his arm towards the ground, sweeping away the sticky slime and knocking into the Kiri-nin who smashed into a tree. "My code name is Akashiori, and I learned that one during my last mission," the Hunter-nin spat at the memory. Then he flew at the dazed man in a blur too fast to be tracked and shoved his katana through the heart with a squelch.

Heavy, post-battle silence engulfed the forest.

Akamaki slid his sword out of flesh and wiped it clean with the man's clothes. With a snap of his fingers, he set the man on black Hunter-nin fire. Walking over to the other Kiri-nin who was still half alive, he snapped again, ignoring the strangled scream as the man burned to death. Finally he backtracked to the first ninja he'd killed and snapped a third time.

"Cheetah-san, let us continue," was all he said as he calmly picked up the trail and sprinted away from the mess.

It took a moment for Minato draw himself out of the shock of seeing Akamaki burn a man alive. This was exactly why the ANBU were at odds with the Hunter-nin Corps; their ruthlessness was what set them apart. Even the cruelest within the ANBU would have killed the downed man before destroying the body, a practice of humanity the organization valued. How could he have forgotten this fact?

He'd forgotten because of Naruto. Although he knew Uzuhara Naruto was a Hunter-nin, he was kind and seemed to emit light even when plunged into emotional darkness. His new friend didn't seem capable of such brutality. He didn't seem like a shinobi who would coldly burn an incapacitated man outside of battle! Still, Naruto's occupation was a Hunter-nin, had been for a year, and was even praised by Hokage-sama for his work and efficiency.

Minato wondered what Naruto was like during missions.

* * *

The Uchiha's head had been retrieved and body burned. Before heading back to Konoha, they stopped for the night. It was now Cheetah's – Minato's – turn to be uncomfortable with his temporary partner.

"Cheetah-san, each of us is in our respective line of work because we are suited for it." Naruto cut the silence with his falsely gruff voice, knowing exactly what Minato was debating. "This is how we operate, and this is why we are Hunter-nin, not ANBU."

The ANBU Captain didn't seem mollified by the meager comment, but he nodded and remained in a thoughtful silence. Naruto reexamined the mission from the start to present. At the beginning when he had stormed out of Sandaime-Jijii's office, his Uzuhara Hunter-nin persona had mixed with his Akashiori persona, projecting his fury as Uzuhara would have; it was fortunate that both were Hunter-nin so he had instinctively stabilized his chakra. It had taken a while for Akashiori to overcome Uzuhara's rage and frustration, and through it all, Minato had been professional and courteous.

Throughout the chase, Naruto had been beyond impressed by Minato's speed. Ero-Sannin had boasted that Namikaze Minato had been one of the most gifted shinobi who ever lived and the fastest shinobi of his time, and Naruto was now starting to see for himself why.

During their combat assessment, they had been testing each other and playing around. But now in a mission, Minato was the epitome of a perfect shinobi. His speed was phenomenal, his movements were clean and disciplined, and Naruto could feel the keen eyes studying his every move action, nothing escaping his notice.

When Naruto had increased their pace, Minato hadn't batted an eye and followed as if nothing had changed. Hours later, the Hunter-nin had begun to tire but Minato looked unruffled, like he'd just started the mission. Naruto, even in the Akashiori persona, almost pouted at that; he was so jealous! Then he'd sighed inwardly at Kyuubi's snickering and wished he had made time to continue training with Gai and Lee even after joining the Hunter-nin Corps. Naruto was now paying for the neglect.

After the fight with the Kiri-nin, Naruto had carried out the routine corpse processing and didn't notice anything wrong until after the Uchiha had been taken care of. Minato had been slightly aloof and uncomfortable with him, and only when they stopped to rest did Naruto understand why. What gave it away was Minato's animal mask, unlike the Hunter-nin masks which had no constraints in design, identifying him as ANBU.

ANBU and Hunter-nin were rivals and enemies, all because the ANBU disliked Hunter-nin methods and, the Hunter-nin couldn't care less.

Naruto snorted to Kyuubi, 'It's like the relationship between me and Sasuke. The funny thing is, Sasuke ended up as ANBU while I joined Corps.'

'_Oh, the irony.'_ Kyuubi chuckled dryly.

'Hmm, this could work in our favor,' Naruto pondered. 'Kyuu, do you think he'll stop following me around if Uzuhara Naruto shows his the cold, cruel Hunter-nin side?'

'_The idea has merit, but Namikaze seems to be an open-minded man.'_ The fox paused._ 'However, the real question is, kit, do you truly want to lose his friendship?'_

'…'

'_He is a good man.'_ Kyuubi sent Naruto a warm smile of approval. _'He can help you recover from this predicament you have landed yourself in with your botched time jutsu.'_

Naruto sighed aloud and ignored Minato's questioning tilt. "I'll take first watch."

* * *

Naruto walked aimlessly through ANBU Headquarters, following the halls and occasionally turning right or left. This was the first time since he arrived twenty-four years in the past that he had nothing to do and no urge to do anything. He was bored…

The debriefing had barely taken any time, at least for him. Minato had been held back to report his evaluation and opinion on Akashiori's performance. Naruto could only speculate what he'd say about his Hunter-nin cold-bloodedness. Minato was definitely ANBU through and through, and one of the best at that. On top of being an excellent teammate and disciplined shinobi, he was righteous and benevolent even while killing. Unlike Hunter-nin…

It seemed like the Hunter-nin Corps was filled with screwed up people like him. Of course, there were traumatized shinobi in ANBU, but none were severe because those who were critically damaged left ANBU for lower level shinobi positions. On the other hand, people who became Hunter-nin tended to be victims of horror stories, the ones who had experienced the worst but somehow stayed sane, and because of that they could handle the dirty work of eliminating the worst of criminals. To avoid snapping, Hunter-nin preferred to keep their on-duty and off-duty lives completely separate.

Using personas like his.

They preferred to stay away from teamwork and all that camaraderie stuff that the ANBU prized so much, only sharing twisted banter which only they found funny and comforting silence between people truly empathetic when they passed through the Hunter-nin lounge. As a result of solitary missions, they subconsciously altered their fighting style to reflect independence and lack of judgment from others.

Ruthless.

Naruto had become a model Hunter-nin. Even during his jounin infiltration missions, he usually worked as the lone infiltrator, passing information to teammates posted as lookouts. That was why it was strange to see all these shinobi gathered in one place. The ANBU lived together, ate together, trained together, and played together. After that, they worked together. Years ago, Naruto would have loved it and thought it a dream come true, but now none of his shinobi personas trusted crowds, not even as Hokage in training. There were just too many opportunities for hidden attacks.

Hah, his _charming_ shinobi personas like to play with missing-nin though, Naruto thought as a bit of immaturity slipped to the surface. Now that he was taking missions again, he could get back to testing jutsu on his mission targets. How exciting!

'_Please refrain from creating anything idiotic like your last,'_ Kyuubi warned, ominously flailing his tails.

'I know, I know. I've learned my lesson. Maybe I'll just review the time jutsu. Then, I might be able to figure out what happened to my own time.'

'_No,' _the fox growled._ 'You are a magnet for trouble. You will probably throw us further into the past just by _looking_ at it. I do not want to merge with another me in the past.'_

Naruto sighed. 'I know, I know.' He didn't really feel like doing anything at the moment anyway.

By this time, he had already toured the entire building, looking curiously into lounges and extracurricular rooms like soundproof piano rooms and art studios. Despite entering Headquarters multiple times in the past, Naruto had only been allowed access to the ANBU Library and nothing else – he'd thrown a mini-tantrum at that. Now, there was one particular building he was very curious about; the massive training facility right outside his window held so much promise.

The large double doors were inviting, and Naruto entered eagerly like an Academy student would a weapons shop. Inside, he found everything anyone would ever want for training. He couldn't fathom how Hunter-nin stayed on par in skill with ANBU since the Corps didn't even have headquarters, much less a training facility. For secrecy's sake, they didn't even have their own training ground.

This was just _awesome_.

For now, it was enough to stroll through at a leisurely pace and create a mental list of things to try out. There were so much training equipment in the ninjutsu section, and the kenjutsu section had an enormous armory. And that target practice room had–.

"Uzuhara," a familiar voice from behind distracted him. His heart sank as he recognized it to be the canine-like masked man from two nights ago.

Cautiously, he turned to face the tall man and groaned inwardly. "Yes? How can I help you?"

"What are you doing here?" The man asked acidly. "I thought I told you to stay out of our way."

"I'm just looking around, sir." Naruto replied politely, hoping he wouldn't do anything to set the man off. "This is an extraordinary facility."

"You don't have the right to be here, rookie." The man ignored the blonde's respectful manner. "You might have passed Hokage-sama's ANBU test, but you have to get through our own induction tests before you're one of us."

"I'm really only looking around," Naruto repeated warily. "I think I should be going now."

The ANBU looked piercingly through the eyeholes. "I'll lead you out."

"Uhh, I can find my way…" the Hunter-nin tensed. Something wasn't right.

"Show respect to your superiors!" The man barked. "Come." He grabbed Naruto's upper arm and dragged him down a hall.

"Where are we going, sir…?" He tried to twist out of the hand, knowing this wasn't the path to an exit.

The man tightened his bruising grip to prevent escape. "You're all Namikaze-san's been talking about. Uzuhara this, Uzuhara that. I'm going to show everyone you're not worth _anyone's_ time."

_He's jealous_, Naruto realized, _dangerously jealous_. He was pulled through a set of double doors to the center of a large, open gymnasium. When the man gestured with his hands, five large men gathered around them. The shinobi who were training around the room stopped to watch the scene unfold.

"Listen up," the canine-masked man shouted to the bystanders. "We've got a treat for everyone tonight! This rookie here, Uzuhara's been bragging about how he's good enough to take Namikaze-san down. We're going to test this little twerp to see if he's really as good as he says! Who wants to see him fight?"

"I haven't been…!" Naruto protested frantically, still tugging at his arm, but his voice was barely heard as whispers erupted around them.

"Let's show him what happens when anyone slanders Cheetah's name!" A scattered cheer of approval filled the room as six shinobi attacked him simultaneously.

The fight was mean and dirty. Six full-fledged ANBU against one supposed rookie, and they attacked him all at once without holding back. Ninjutsu, taijutsu, kenjutsu, genjutsu. They threw them all. While the ANBU were in full gear, he was in loose pants and shirt with no weapons or protection from attacks. Unprepared and tired from the mission just hours ago, Naruto was having difficulty suppressing his urge to utilize Hunter-nin assassination techniques. All he could do was attack to incapacitate, defend and throw what ninjutsu he could form before the next attack hit him.

As Naruto knocked two men out with a massive wind attack, one launched a fireball which he only noticed and dodged because of the incoming heat, but it was a trap which placed him position for a kick to the ribs. He could feel something breaking, and with its breaking his mind began to crumble.

He was so angry and frustrated at _everything_. His stupid broken masks and time jutsu and this stupid new world, and now there were these ANBU assholes who had decided their poor Namikaze-sama needed his honor defended. Naruto didn't want to be here, among these strangers. Why should this time's Sandaime-sama force interaction with people who weren't _his_. He didn't want ties with anyone here. They would just distract him from his duty. He just wanted to go back home to his precious people!

Control over his emotions was slipping quickly, and the urge to kill his enemies was growing stronger by the second. _I mustn't kill, I mustn't kill,_ Naruto reminded himself over and over within his deteriorating sanity. As injuries on his body increased, his own attacks increased in brutality. Four eliminated. Two hostiles remaining. Hostile No. 1: broken arm, shattered kneecap, sprained ankle, bleeding stomach. Hostile No. 2: broken ribs, shredded leg, dislocated shoulder, burnt side. Akashiori: broken rib, incapacitated arm, concussion, kunai to the thigh, broken foot, broken fingers, deep slice to his side, _mental breakdown_.

Despite the lack of his physical mask, Naruto was now in full Akashiori persona but lacking his control. _I mustn't kill, I mustn't kill_, he insisted, but the voice was losing strength, and need for vengeance was slowly gaining ground. His ruthless Hunter-nin techniques were surfacing, and he was so close to snapping his fingers to burn the downed bodies, alive or not.

The two remaining men caught him off guard, slamming him to the ground. His shadow clones were now so weak that they were only useful for kawarimi and decoys. He barely had enough energy to create a weak wind barrier and make time to calm himself, but a blast of fire blown at the barrier mixed with the wind and created a flaming hurricane, trapping him within a burning oven.

That was the final straw.

Red, malicious chakra began to seep out of his body, reaching out and tearing down the hurricane. He could sense his surroundings clearly now. One hostile had woken up, making it a total of three capable of fighting. There were thirty humans in the room. He could smell fear beginning to leak from the three men in front of him.

Kyuubi's angry chakra burned better than ever. So, so delicious that he was getting high off of it!

_I'm going to kill them._

Disregarding the pain in his broken body, Naruto leapt at them wildly, starting to form a Rasengan in each hand to slam through their pitiful human chests.

BANG!

"What the _hell_ is going on here!" Someone roared.

The gunshot slam of the doors flying open and the enraged, piercing voice and chakra from one he recognized as a trusted ally reached him in the red, muffled haze. It dredged up the will to salvage what sanity and energy he had remaining to stop his attack and force the red back down. Naruto collapsed in a heap, barely having the strength move from the physical and emotional deterioration.

"Naruto! Naruto!" A panicked voice reached his ears. It felt like Minato. All he could do was grunt in response and curl into a ball, but when a hand touched his shoulder he jumped violently and backed away like an abused animal, emitting frightened whimpers as he rocked himself forward and backward. "Don't touch me, leave me alone! Don't touch me!"

"Fuck!" The presence that felt like Minato swore. He felt arms wrap around him and flinched as a wave of dizziness hit him, but before he could react, he was on something soft and the dizziness evaporated.

"Naruto? Hey, can you hear me?"

He whined in acknowledgement. He felt gentle fingers running through his hair. The motion allowed him to collect enough pieces of his mind to focus. Warm healing chakra spread around his body. Naruto guardedly cracked open his eyes and saw concerned blue.

"Naruto?" Minato spoke gently, kneeling beside the bed.

As the physical pain faded to a dull ache, his awareness returned. "Mi…na…to?"

"That's right," the ANBU Captain said in a soft, soothing voice. "You're in my room. You're safe."

Naruto gave a small nod but moaned from the pain in his head.

"I'm sorry, Naruto…I couldn't take you to the infirmary. It would be bad if they found you're a Hunter-nin."

"…find 'm Hunter?" Naruto mumbled in muddled confusion.

"Yes, we're in ANBU Headquarters." Minato answered apologetically, placing a comforting hand on Naruto's upper arm. "I doubt you'd apprec–"

Naruto's breath hitched. _ANBU!_

"_Don't touch me_!" Naruto snarled and sharply pulled away. "I _hate_ you!"

Naruto felt Minato's chakra spike. "Naruto? What's wrong?"

"I hate you ANBU!" He's eyes glazed in anger, and he began to hyperventilate. "You bastards didn't show up!" He gasped shallowly. "Two weeks of torture in that dungeon. I escaped, and turns out your retrieval team felt I had lowest priority because I'm a **demon**." Naruto suddenly curled a bloody hand around Minato's neck, gently but threateningly stroking the skin over his jugular vein.

"Do you still want to be my friend now, Minato? _Me_. Demon Hunter-nin with a fucked up past and a fucked up job that lets me do whatever I want with my targets as long as they end up dead?" He let out a dark, strangled laugh, releasing the neck after a slight squeeze. "I have a 'flee on sight' order in the Bingo Books, and I love it! It makes the chase even better!"

Although Minato's eyes widened in shock, he reached up to hold the shuddering scarred cheeks in warm, steady palms as he forced Naruto calm his breathing. Tears began to fill the Hunter-nin's eyes, but he blinked furiously to stop them from escaping. Naruto growled in irritation.

"Look at me, Naruto. Breathe and look at me." Minato tilted the distraught blonde's face to meet his unwavering eyes. "It's…if it's the job you feel most comfortable with, then I have nothing against that. I also have nothing at all against your past. I still want to be your friend."

"W-what…?" Naruto's angry eyes grew wide. "You're lying," he hissed. "You ANBU fuckers hate us."

"No, I thought about it a lot over my mission," Minato said, not letting go of Naruto's disbelieving face. "The ANBU are hypocrites to criticize Hunter-nin methods. Hunter-nin are like…ANBU Torture & Interrogation except in the field."

"You're lying," Naruto said firmly even as tears leaked from his eyes and down his cheeks. "Y-you hate us, and I hate you…"

"I don't hate you," Minato insisted, brushing his thumb across a wet cheek. "I don't hate you."

"B-but, y-you're lying." Naruto's voice cracked as he tried to push him away weakly. "…if you knew… you'd hate me."

Minato removed his hands and wrapped his arms around slumped shoulders, pulling the smaller blonde's form closer. "I'm not lying," he said clearly into Naruto's ear.

"…but I hate you…" he shook his head against the strong support around him and whispered again as if to hold on to what remained of his failing conviction. "…hate you…"

"You can hate me, but I'll never hate you." He began running his fingers through Naruto's soft hair again.

Shaking hands slowly reached to latch onto Minato's shirt, but the rest of Naruto remained stiff and unmoving. This time, the only evidence of his overwhelming anguish was the wetness seeping into the cloth over Minato's shoulder.

* * *

"Soooo…" Naruto began awkwardly, flushing again from embarrassment. "I'm really sorry…"

"Hmm?"

Naruto had eventually calmed down and shot out of Minato's arms, looking mortified that he had broken down in front of him yet again. While smaller blonde sat on the bed, leaning against the wall with absent eyes to piece together the last loose fragments of his mind, Minato had plopped himself down next to him to study a scroll of jutsu until Naruto woke up from whatever he was doing.

"I'm really, _really_ sorry…" Naruto apologized again.

"Mmhmm."

Naruto huffed at Minato's lack of attention and leaned over to see what scroll he was studying, giving the preoccupied blonde's arm a nudge.

The time traveler choked. "The Four Symbols Seal…"

"Hmm, yeah." Minato mumbled, busy scribbling down some notes.

"Minato, w-what're you studying that for?" Naruto asked discreetly but urgently. Did Minato start studying this seal so early in time?

Minato finally lifted his eyes to the blond head leaning on his arm. "Have you heard of it before?" Naruto nodded nervously.

"You know how it's still incomplete, right?" Naruto repeated the nod, though, not actually knowing since it had already been completed in his time. "I'm trying to find the right runes to stabilize it and then keep it from drifting so the cage will be grounded."

"I see…" Naruto trailed off, having no idea what to do or say in this situation. He didn't think _'Hey, Minato, you already perfected it around…two decades ago!'_ or _'Look here, I have three of them on my stomach.'_ would go over well with anyone so he chose the smart option of fishing for information, a skill he'd learned only recently.

"How did you learn about this seal?" Naruto asked, innocently curious.

"I have a friend from Uzushiogakure. She's the one who got me interested in Sealing Arts." Minato smiled softly in remembrance. "She told me about it a few years ago."

"Wow, you've been studying it that long?" Naruto probed with faked surprise.

"What? No, I just got a copy of the scroll last week."

_Last week…crap, it's definitely because of me and Kyuu, _Naruto fidgeted at the thought. "Are you planning on using it?"

"Maybe, maybe not. It depends on whether there's a spirit that needs to be sealed." Minato shrugged casually.

In exaggerated anxiety, Naruto nudged Minato's arm again and stuttered, "I-is there a threat of one any time soon?" Naruto hoped this question would bring forth some concrete information.

Minato looked grimly down at him. "To tell you the truth, there might be. I can't tell you much since it's an S-class secret, but I've been told by a well-informed source to stay alert."

He raised distressed eyes to Minato's troubled ones. "S-Sandaime-Jijii?" He might be laying the fear it a bit thick.

"Well…no. Hokage-sama said everything is fine, but my source isn't convinced." At Naruto's skeptical frown, Minato elaborated. "I believe this source because of their precarious position in this delicate situation."

That confirmed it. Now that his mother was digging into the issue herself, this could only end disastrously, especially since Minato was deeply involved. If Naruto ever met her, there was a very good chance of his own S-class Kyuubi secret revealed and both his Uzuhara Naruto Hunter-nin and Tokubetsu Jounin personas irreparably damaged. This was certainly a 'delicate situation' for which he and the Hokage needed to fabricate a convincing cover before Minato discovered anything or any information leaked out. If Tobi found out in any way and started digging as well…

Naruto fought the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. These days, everything happening around him seemed to require damage control. In this case, he needed to work from both the inside and out to manipulate a positive, or at least neutral, outcome. First, he would start out by infiltr…integrating himself into the circle of his mother's most trusted friends as someone who had the expertise to help and therefore could be included in their secrets.

"What do you have so far?" Naruto shifted closer to study the seal in development.

"Oh, that's right, you're a Seal Master. Take a look; you might see something I'm missing," Minato said, tilting the scroll in the smaller blonde's direction.

Naruto noticed with great relief that there was still a significant amount of work to be done before its completion. He would just need to prolong the estimated time required by subtly throwing them off course on occasion.

"This stroke to the right. It might be detracting from the structure's balance." Naruto made an attempt to disrupt a well-hidden but critical portion of the seal.

"Hmm, that's true, but the mark below evens it out."

The problem was, Minato was too good of a Seal Master, no doubt better than himself who had had little guidance and learned through trial and error. However, because he developed his skills through experimentation and practical application, he was confident about having a better understanding of the intricacies of Fuuinjutsu application. He could win this game.

"But you have to consider the clashing of the spirit's chakra against the cage. See here…" They continued to trade suggestions back and forth but in the end reached no conclusion.

Minato furrowed his brow, nodding pensively. "I guess we'll have to look for another combination of runes."

Naruto hid his grin in the pretense of bending down for a closer look. This should set them back at least two weeks. He knew every single scroll and jutsu on Sealing in the ANBU Library; Minato would be led astray by the many false leads for this particular problem, only to find that the original runes were the best.

Maaaaybe he felt a bit guilty, but it was Konoha's survival on the line.

"Naruto, how are you feeling?" The sudden change in topic shook him out of his troubled thoughts.

After a moment he answered, "I'm better. Mostly healed." Naruto smiled gratefully up at Minato before looking down at his hands still covered in specks of dried blood. "Minato, thanks, _really_. I lost it for a few seconds back there, but somehow your voice and chakra were…mmm, how do I describe it? They were…soothing and calmed me down right away. That's surprising since, usually, someone has to knock me unconscious." Too busy studying his healed fingers which had been broken earlier, Naruto missed the pleased blush lightly staining the ANBU Captain's cheeks.

A question popped into Naruto's head. "How did you know to go there?"

Minato frowned and curled his hands into fists. "I heard people talking about Jackal bullying a rookie again, and you're the first new agent here in three months. Then your chakra spiked from the training facility. It felt more destructive than when I channeled it last week so I knew I had to hurry." Minato's expression turned to one of rage. "They always do this under my name. I'm sick of people getting hurt because of it!"

"Minato…I was about to kill them…" Naruto hung his head in shame. "I'm already so angry with life in general, but they just had to push. I was about to shove my hands through their chests." He raised haunted eyes to look at the man beside him. "And I would have enjoyed every bit of it. I probably would have laughed afterwards. There were points during the fight that I almost snapped my fingers and set them on black fire."

Minato hooked a comforting arm over Naruto's shoulders. "We all have limits, and what happened was a self-defense mechanism. We are shinobi; those who taunt fellow shinobi should know and expect the consequences." The ANBU Captain gave a small reassuring squeeze. "They asked for it. You did nothing wrong."

Naruto nodded sullenly, but his anxiety didn't disappear. Minato didn't know about _his_ Kyuubi. If he found out, there was no doubt he would be considered too dangerous to even walk on the streets, especially with his psychological issues. Minato might fully accept his mother's Kyuubi, but she wasn't a jaded killing machine who would wipe out masses of people if ordered. He would probably find out eventually, and Naruto didn't know how badly he would react if Minato began to avoid him.

"Er, Naruto… Do you hate me?" Minato asked apprehensively.

Naruto's eyebrows rose and after a moment of silence, he broke into laughter, and then he laughed even harder at his friend's glare. What timing… "I'm sorry I said that. If I really hated you, I would have already beaten you up, completely ignored you, or pranked you viciously." He snickered at several of his legendary pranks. "I don't hate all of ANBU. I've had really good friends here. I'm just holding a huge, deeply ingrained, malicious grudge against a minority. And I certainly don't hate _you_."

The larger blonde sighed in relief. "Do you really have a 'flee-on-site' order?"

"Well~, I used to, before my last mission." Naruto smiled at how proud he had been. He remembered bouncing around in Tsunade-babaa's office for an entire day, and then being horrified that he couldn't shove it in Sasuke's face whose ANBU name had yet to make it into the Bingo Books. "I bet you do too." He said, already knowing.

Minato turned to face the other away as his cheeks dusted pink again. "Yes, but they're exaggerating…there are countless shinobi much better and deadlier than I am who should be mentioned instead."

Naruto hummed in appreciation. "I think modesty makes for a better shinobi," he grinned, "something I definitely lack." Minato's down-to-earth attitude was incredibly refreshing. The only experiences he'd had with prodigies were Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei, Neji, Itachi, Orochimaru, and all those stuck-up, eccentric idiots who made him want to tear their hair out. Maybe it was their genius combined with bad childhoods that made them senseless and socially awkward. But Minato had thrown those solid beliefs about prodigies out the window.

Naruto leaned back against Minato's arm and thought, for the first time, that this timeline might not be so bad.

* * *

**A/N:** Oops, sorry! No Kushina this time… And I think Naruto's had enough of his angsty stuff.

Next chapter: I promise Kushina! Some Minato's POV? And maybe put Haikage to work.

_May 24, 2012_


	7. Mayhem

**A/N:** This chapter is a bit rough. I didn't spend much time editing it, so please excuse any mistakes.

To my dear reader Mai (who needs to get a ffn account so I can reply to her reviews :D ): You got where I was going with Naruto perfectly. Love you!

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai**, timetravel.

* * *

***Warning*!: **For those of you uncomfortable with the **Mina/Naru** pairing (**shounin-ai, incest**), it's going to become obvious from this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter 7: Mayhem**

Secured within the Hokage's personal lounge, two men sat in grim silence.

Sarutobi closed his tired eyes for several seconds before opening them to reveal fiery determination mirrored in Haikage's eyes. "We have two and a half years until war, meaning we have two and a half years to prepare ourselves in the way of training shinobi, forging alliances, and establishing an information network," the Sandaime Hokage reiterated their agreed plan of action.

Haikage acknowledged him with a short nod. He revealed the details he had prepared for the late-night Kage Kaigi, the Shadow Assembly. "Hokage-sama, we will need to utilize all the time we have for the first task. In my timeline, none of the shinobi countries were prepared for war and therefore lacked power to defend and attack."

"There is not much we can or need to do for the Academy students other than to add chakra and physical exercises into the curriculum. This will at least give them the skills to run from danger," Haikage continued.

Sarutobi grimaced at the thought of children in war. The First Shinobi World War had begun before his birth, and all of his own childhood had been spent learning how to fight and survive. Many children had grown up believing war was the way of the world, and some never grew out of the mindset.

"It is the genin teams and chuunin which we will need to focus on," Haikage continued. "It is best to set an ambitious training guideline for each team's jounin-sensei to follow. When I was a genin, there were no established requirements, and our growth depended solely on the amount of effort the teacher was willing to contribute. My team only learned tree walking and a bit of sparring before our first Chuunin Exam. Hokage-sama, I refuse to allow unprepared child soldiers to become war sacrifices due to neglect." He scowled in disgust as he remembered how ill-prepared they had been for Otogakure's invasion. "For the chuunin, we can employ injured or retired shinobi to lead regular supplemental training sessions in every Ninja Art to monitor and improve their skills."

"Finally, jounin should to be evaluated and grouped by specializations for advanced training in their particular field. Once they have gained a sufficient level of expertise, they can be matched with shinobi from other specialization groups to form well-rounded teams."

Sarutobi nodded his approval. "Once the details are finalized, it will be implemented as soon as possible. I will handle the logistics."

"Haikage-san, you will be primarily dealing with international relations. We must reduce the frequency of skirmishes along Land of Fire borders and establish alliances or peace treaties with smaller nations to determine which will fight with us, against us, or remain neutral. Since our major enemies will be Iwagakure and Sunagakure, our efforts will target the western nations."

Haikage furrowed his brow. This was going to be slightly tricky. He would have to decide whether to use the Haikage's black masked face or to recruit ambassadors to work under him. Going himself would ensure business was carried out tactfully, but that would take more time than he wished to spend on the task. Sending ambassadors would get the job done faster, but diplomacy depended on a subtle exchange of words which few could manage. The best was probably a combination of the two, with him making the initial visit and then sending ambassadors after the connection was made.

"Hokage-sama, I request several teams of politically inclined shinobi as ambassadors to those nations."

"Granted. I will ask our Head Ambassador for recommendations." He penciled a note. "That is enough for today. This concludes the Kage Kaigi. Good work Haikage-san."

The tension dissipated.

"Now, Naruto, I was informed that you were attacked. Would you care to explain?" Sarutobi waited for him to elaborate with the air of a parent waiting impatiently for a naughty child to confess.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Uhh…well. I was ambushed."

"Really, ambushed?"

Naruto vigorously nodded his head.

"Are you sure, Naruto?" Sarutobi asked casually but arched a strong eyebrow. "Because I heard you were bullied."

Naruto's eyes widened slightly and he froze.

"Is that true?"

Naruto pressed his lips firmly into a thin line and refused to say anything.

Now Sarutobi turned on his full parental glare. "Naruto."

His lips turned into what could be mistaken for a pout. "Oh fine! Yes!" He surrendered with exasperation. "You know, it's not very cool to advertise that you were bullied."

Sarutobi hid a chuckle at the boy's attitude by taking a drag from his pipe but couldn't comprehend how this exceptional shinobi had gotten bullied.

"Then?"

"We fought," the Hunter-nin answered vaguely. His eyes slowly narrowed into a glare which could never win against those of an angry father.

"_Naruto."_ Sarutobi's parental glare returned to counter Naruto's petulant one.

"Okay, okay!" He gave in, mumbling about how Sandaime-Jijii should have exhausted his daddy vibes on Asuma and genin teams by this time of the day. "They trapped and _ambushed_ me six-to-one in the training facility. _We fought._ I was tired and angry and pissed off that I couldn't kill the assholes." Naruto pouted, and then smirked smugly. "They got a bunch of hits in, but I gave better than I got and knocked four of them out."

"Go on."

Abruptly, his cocky attitude deflated and Naruto fidgeted in his seat, not looking so tough regardless of his Haikage attire. "I…uh…lost control, you know, from the injustice of it all. I was mad at them and everything else, so I started to draw on Kyuubi's chakra. Minato woke me up before I did any damage."

"I heard from Minato-kun that your injuries were not merely 'a bunch of hits'."

"Yeahhh, maybe a bit more…"_ Minato, you idiot. _Naruto met Sarutobi's eyes defiantly. "Just ask him if you want to know more, old man."

Sarutobi sighed and wondered how the blonde could be a cold, professional killer in one moment and revert to a rebellious teenage boy in the next. His multiple personas were so well constructed to fit each respective situation, and in all his years as a shinobi, Sarutobi had never seen someone so well-versed in their application. Naruto was not lying when he called himself the Master of Deception. "Very well. I have a mission for you, Uzuhara Naruto, Tokujou of Infiltration & Reconnaissance. I will send the details to your room later. Now, go to bed young man!"

"Ugh…what's wrong with old geezers?" He grumbled not so quietly under his breath. "It must be their stiff joints." He laughed and escaped the room before Sandaime-Jijii could throw another writing utensil as a senbon.

* * *

A week ago, a disheveled Naruto had knocked on Minato's door and told him he was leaving for a week-long mission as Tokujou, then rushed off before he could reply, obviously running late. Now Minato was impatiently awaiting his return, contemplating why he was waiting at all. He'd never before waited for anyone's return without setting up an agreed place and time prior to departure.

Uzuhara Naruto was a fascinating specimen to study. He had suddenly dropped into his life and proceeded to strew his orderly mind every which way. Originally, he had wanted to help the owner of the pain-filled chakra, but after the boy ran out on him for no reason, Minato couldn't stop thinking about him; in the span of two days, he had turned Minato into a Jiraiya-worthy stalker.

Naruto was a mass of contradictions. He was heartbroken but lively, aloof but friendly, reckless but calculating, unpredictable but brilliant, world-weary but pure at heart, weak but strong, and so many more. The first time they met in the laundry room, Minato thought he had walked into a battlefield. Angry, devastated chakra emitting howls of emotional pain mixed with the scent of blood permeating through air almost made him gag until he saw a boy furiously scrubbing his blood-soaked uniform, a uniform he only noticed later to be of a Hunter-nin. He had impulsively called out and unintentionally frightened the blond-haired, blue-eyed boy enough for him to make a frantic escape. Minato didn't know what had come over him when he realized he was looking at the ANBU Headquarters' dorm assignments for the new tenant's identity. Uzuhara Naruto. _Interesting name._

Their meetings afterwards were non-existent until the Hunter-nin's Shinobi Assessment. Uzuhara was good. Better than good. Good enough to fight on par with him in a mock battle. He was unpredictable and wild and had thrown Minato into confusion for half of the match. First that underground chakra technique, then the wakizashi taijutsu form, the use of seals with shadow clones, his exhilaratingly complex chakra, and Gamabunta. Okay, that undeniably amounted to more than half…

Then, he discovered Uzuhara had a past saturated with physical and emotional suffering. How was he still functional? Yet, Yamanaka-san had described that tortured mind as beautiful. From Yamanaka-san's descriptions and his own experiences with the blonde, Minato had to agree.

Uzuhara didn't make sense. Still, Minato had the illogically overwhelming desire to become this troublesome boy's – no, man's – friend. No person could remain a boy after what he'd gone through. He had found later that the Hunter-nin was much more broken than he showed outwardly, and Minato was honored to have his help accepted.

In the days following, Naruto had shown more swings between extreme emotions, but it seemed Minato had become accepted as a friend, perhaps his only friend excluding the Sandaime Hokage. Now, _that_ was truly gratifying. Minato had achieved a position of trust and reliance, and Naruto, though he didn't know it, had achieved the same with Minato.

Which must be why he was waiting, Minato sighed. He was fixated.

He wondered what Naruto was doing on the mission. He had said something about Tokujou and Infiltration. From what Minato had seen during their match, Naruto was excellent at deception – maybe the best – which would make him perfect for infiltration and espionage.

Minato jumped at three raps on his door. _Naruto!_

Beyond the doorway, he saw the Hunter-nin smiling tiredly up at him.

"Hi, I'm back. Missed me?"

Minato grinned at the playful tone, but concern filled his eyes. "You look exhausted. Are you alright?"

Naruto rolled his eyes and grumbled, "I swear, you ask that every time we see each other." Then he looked hopefully at the taller blonde. "Have you had lunch? I'm hungry."

Minato held back a laugh. That was Naruto's offhand version of how Minato would have phrased: 'Regardless of whether you've already eaten, will you accompany me to lunch?'

After an amused nod, they walked through the halls. As tired and oblivious as Naruto was, he didn't notice the stares and whispers, but Minato noticed and felt dread fill him. His emotionally unbalanced friend might not be ready to face an awestruck crowd, and much less any fear-driven ostracism.

Moments after they entered the cafeteria, the entire room fell silent. _Now_, Naruto noticed. His face showed alarm and horrified realization that his loss of control in the training facility was the cause of this reaction; his normally expressive face hardened into cold, blank stone. In a controlled, monotonous voice, Naruto spoke. "Minato, shall we proceed?" Without looking to see if he followed, the Hunter-nin took measured steps to the food bar.

The ANBU in the room watched Naruto silently until he disappeared from sight. Whispers erupted around the large room. When Naruto appeared again, this time with a tray of food, the whispers again faded into silence. "Minato, let's sit over there." Naruto pointed at a table near two exits – two escape routes.

As they began eating, a man walked over to them. Naruto's chopsticks froze halfway, and his shoulders tensed.

"Excuse me. Uzuhara-san right…?" The man started carefully but gained enthusiasm as he spoke. "I just wanted to say great job last week. Thanks for putting Jackal in his place. You were awesome! I'm Frog, by the way. It's nice to meet you!"

Naruto's stiff expression cracked into one of wariness and bewilderment followed soon after by a twitch of his lips. Minato grinned.

"Um, thanks Frog-san. I didn't really do anything though," came the tentative reply.

"No way! You kicked ass. Just call me Frog. If you ever need anything or want to hang out, swing by room 220." After waving goodbye, the man walked away, humming happily.

Naruto stared incredulously after the man who had swept through like a mini storm and then to Minato who was still grinning. "Wha…?"

Minato thought a silent, heartfelt thank you to Frog. "They consider you a hero for beating Jackal. Many of the ANBU who joined in the last four years were bullied by him. He might be a jerk, but he's skilled on missions, which is why we haven't been able to dismiss him. He went too far last week, though, so he was sent to Torture & Interrogation and put on probation for a few months. He might even get kicked out."

"And…beware the crowd of Uzuhara Naruto worshippers heading our way," he warned merrily.

Naruto scanned his wide eyes around the cafeteria and eeped in a way Minato could only describe as adorable. He saw a faint blush appearing on the Hunter-nin's cheeks which turned into a full flush as more people showered him with their gratitude.

Minato cheerfully resumed eating, watching a flustered Naruto trying to deny the weight of his actions. It took two hours for the 'hero' finished his lunch, and Minato had enjoyed watching every second of it. Naruto's smiles now came easier and brighter, and there was less hesitancy in his interactions.

"So, what did you think?" Minato asked in amusement as they walked out.

Naruto's blush returned along with a grin as he recalled the events. "It was strange…but good."

Minato nodded and slung an arm around Naruto's shoulders, an action quickly becoming one of his favorites. "Great, because you'll be getting more of that tonight, tomorrow at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and probably for the rest of the week. Not with the same intensity though."

Naruto's eyebrows rose in surprise but a moment later, confusion set in. "Why weren't they scared of my red chakra? Everyone's always hated me for it."

Minato ruffled Naruto's hair playfully. "Many ANBU shinobi have unusual skills or bloodlines, so being different isn't a big deal here. To us, your other chakra is just your own unique tool for fighting."

At these words, Naruto slowly formed the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. It wasn't wide or dazzling but soft and sweet. His eyes were bright and serene. He looked as if a significant weight had been lifted and was finally at peace with something. Minato felt his heart skip a tiny beat and his chakra jump; he never before wanted a camera as badly as he did now.

"Naruto, would you like to spend the afternoon in my room?"

The shorter blonde grinned and nodded. "That sounds great if you don't mind that I do a bit of work first."

Minato returned the grin with one of his own and steered his friend to their rooms for Naruto to collect his materials. He returned to Minato's room twenty _long_ minutes later with several scrolls, papers, and writing utensils which were all dumped in a messy pile on Minato's bed.

"What are those for?" Minato leaned over curiously to study the collection. "Advanced sealing, henge, clones, and medical jutsu theories."

"I'm trying to come up with a more permanent Henge and long-lasting Kage Bunshin in the form of seals. They'd come in handy during my infiltration missions." Naruto explained absently, already beginning to formulate ideas in his mind.

Minato froze when his fingers fiddled with one of the scrolls. "Naruto…are you allowed to have these library scrolls?"

"Mmm…not really." The younger blonde shot him a shit-eating grin. "It's their fault security was lax enough for me to nick them. That librarian's snores covered up any noise I made. He sounded like the group of giant wild boar that attacked me in the Forest."

"I see…" Perhaps it would be wiser to feign ignorance. "Well, if you need a sounding board, I'm always available."

Naruto nodded gratefully and crawled eagerly to his loot.

A short while later, Naruto was on his stomach, stretched across Minato's shins, and scribbling furiously while Minato sat against the wall working through his routine chakra control exercises. He was amused that Naruto had subconsciously spread across the bed while studying, only frowning at Minato's legs for an instant before shrugging and plopping down over them to get comfortable in what he guessed was his friend's typical reading arrangement.

Minato found he liked the company and the comfortable silence with Naruto in this position except for one thing: Naruto's bent legs and feet swinging lazily up and down through the air. Naruto just being there was pleasantly distracting, but the lazy motions of the feet were making it difficult for him to concentrate on a particularly difficult exercise. When he had lost focus for the fifth time, Minato glared at the swinging legs. He didn't have the heart to tell Naruto to stop, but he could tease him a bit.

Minato focused his chakra on his shins and carefully nudged it down to Naruto's legs. Naruto immediately paused his writing but didn't interrupt, obviously curious to see what Minato planned to do. Once the warm chakra spread to form a thin layer around both of Naruto's feet, Minato wiggled it. Naruto let out a yelp at the sudden tickling sensation on the underside of his feet, almost causing him to fall off the bed.

"Minato! What was that for?" Naruto exclaimed.

"Chakra control exercises," Minato answered innocently.

"Liar." Naruto directed a glare at the other, still oblivious to the fact that it was ineffective.

The culprit smirked. "You were distracting me, so I thought it would be fun to distract you back."

The Hunter-nin scowled. "Okay, I've been successfully distracted. Now I'm not letting you get away with it." A glint of something flashed through his eyes. "You offered to be a sounding board, so I'm going to take you up on the offer."

Minato suddenly wasn't sure if that had been a good idea. Naruto was planning something, and he knew he was going to come out the worse for wear. Last time, he'd been swept off his feet, blown up more than once, and electrified. This time…

Minato shuddered.

"Don't worry, don't worry. I'm just going to diagnose you."

"Diagnose me…for what?" Minato asked apprehensively.

"Weeeell, I'm worried about something." Naruto studied Minato intently. "Do you remember the Oiroke no Jutsu I used on Sandaime-Jijii? It should have affected you, but it didn't. So I'm worried."

Minato looked at Naruto as if he had grown another head. "Worried that I didn't react to a jutsu for perverts?"

Naruto nodded sagely. "It works on everyone else."

"That's because I'm not a pervert!"

"Even if you aren't, there should at least have been a teeny-tiny hint of a reaction." Naruto stepped to the center of the room.

"_Oiroke no Jutsu!"_

With a puff, a voluptuous naked Naruko stood in place of Naruto, covered strategically but scantily by clouds. "See, no reaction to nudity. Let's change it up."

_Puff_, slender. _Puff_, brunette. _Puff_, older woman. _Puff_, Hyuuga. _Puff, _muscular_. Puff, _pale_. Puff. Puff. Puff._ _Puff_, red hair.

Minato averted his eyes.

"Aha! A reaction!" Naruko exclaimed gleefully.

"I know someone with red hair, and it's rude to them!" Minato defended, trying to force down his slight blush.

"Oh? You know someone? But you know Hyuuga and Inuzuka too." Red-haired Naruko smirked evilly. "At least you're not asexual. Now let's see if you're bi."

"Naruto…" Minato began dangerously. "What are yo…"

"_Oiroke no Jutsu: Sexy Man!"_

A naked, scantily covered man with the same red hair stood before him. "Hmm, no?"

_Puff_, buff. _Puff_, spandex. _Puff_, Itachi. _Puff_, elderly ("Naruto! That's gross!"). _Puff_. _Puff_. _Puff_.

"Alright, guess not."

Naruto reverted back to himself.

Minato blushed beet red.

Silence.

Minato fidgeted.

Naruto gaped.

Minato looked at him fearfully.

"Y-Y…you…you're a narcissist!"

Minato's eyebrows shot up.

Then he palmed his face in both relief and despair,_ Ughhh, Naruto, I don't think that's it…_

"Idiot! Just put some clothes on!"

He looked down in confusion. "Oh, oops!"

The fearsome ANBU Captain Namikaze Minato, code-named Cheetah, wished he could shrink away and hide under his bed.

Once back in proper clothing, Naruto didn't stop grinning. "Blond hair and blue eyes! Wow, I never thought… attracted to yourself? Really? Minato is a narcissist…!" He repeated in an annoying sing-song voice.

"Shut up." Minato growled, still pink in the face. _If only that were true, _he thought to himself and forcefully changed the subject. "Naruto! Show me what seals you've come up with."

Naruto grinned even wider at Minato's efforts at evasion but complied, apparently satisfied with the mayhem he had created for the day.

The rest of the afternoon was spent completing the seals. With two of the best Seal Masters working together, they created a sturdy seal which could stabilize a Henge by two seal points and another which would allow Kage Bunshin to draw chakra from sources in its the vicinity.

As they cleaned up for dinner, Naruto brought out the blackmail. "If you treat me to ramen, I won't tell that _Minato is a narcissist_."

Minato groaned inwardly. Naruto was never going to let this go…

* * *

As they neared the ramen stand, Minato waved happily at someone at a distance. "Hey, Kushina!"

Naruto's breath hitched. _Kushina; Uzumaki Kushina; his future mother; the ex-vessel of Kyuubi._

He turned to take a glance…

She was beautiful and _alive_. That made her even more beautiful.

Uzumaki Kushina looked up from where she was walking away from Ichiraku and grinned widely. Is that a blush on her face? "Minato, you bastard! I've been trying to get in touch with you!"

…Aaaand she acted like Uzumaki Naruto before the trauma and his life in general: brash and loud.

Naruto couldn't stop staring. He now remembered how many features he had inherited from her. His mouth, always grinning widely. The shape of his eyes, rounder than his father's. His figure, narrower and definitely not as tall as his father's.

He would have continued to stare and compare, but he abruptly felt a strange tug in his stomach and knew the cause instinctively. _Kyuubi!_ He had to get out of there! Now! But before he could move, Minato had slung an arm over his shoulders and was steering them in her direction.

With every step closer, the tug grew more obvious. They were thirty feet away.

'Kyuubi?'

'_Her seal wants to pull parts of me back, but your newly reinforced seal is much stronger and will not break. However, she is most likely feeling the tug as well.'_

Naruto groaned in dismay. The tug wasn't really bad, just strange. The danger was that his mother would know something was up.

"Hey, Naruto. What's wrong?" Minato stopped and looked down at him.

"I-I'm fine." Naruto replied nervously. He was about to give an excuse to leave, but a loud groan interrupted him.

"Kushina!" Minato ran over to her as she squatted, clutching her stomach.

"Ugh, my stomach feels awful," she groaned again.

"How awful?" Minato squatted next to her and began rubbing her back.

"I don't know. Awful. I…I think I might have eaten too much…"

"…eaten too much…?" Minato echoed incredulously.

"Uh huh…I had two more bowls than usual…," she confessed, rocking forward and backward as if trying to relieve the pressure.

'Two more bowls than usual, she says.' Naruto repeated to Kyuubi, flabbergasted.

The demon fox laughed aloud. _'Yes, she was always rather clueless, much like you were. What she feels is no doubt the seal, but because her seal is much weaker, the side effects are much harder on her body.'_

"Minato, you idiot. This is your fault!" She missed a punch to his arm. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"My fault…?" The ANBU Captain looked lost and frantic as he pulled her up to her feet. "Uhh, Kushina, hold on. I'll help you home, okay? Just please don't throw up…"

'_Kit, you should follow while maintaining this same distance.'_ Kyuubi advised. _'If you leave now, and she recovers immediately, she may connect the discomfort to you. You can separate after several blocks.'_

Naruto followed them from the shadows. The two staggered slowly down the street with Kushina trying to defend her ramen and Minato nodding along to appease her. He maintained the distance of about thirty feet.

Strangely, the tug was almost unnoticeably declining in strength. Naruto wouldn't have known if Kyuubi hadn't informed him.

'_I have a theory that proximity over time may cause the connection to weaken. Let us experiment, kit.'_

Under the fox's instruction, Naruto decreased the distance between him and his mother by fifteen feet. The tug shot up exponentially, and she began to sob. The pressure didn't decline even after several minutes.

'_I feel the pull strengthening when we are at this short of a distance._' Kyuubi panted at the strain but waved off Naruto's concern. _'Let us now test the distance of forty feet.'_

The tug almost disappeared. He could also see his mother relaxing.

'_The seals have no effect on each other after a certain distance.'_ Kyuubi regained his composure. _'Decrease the distance gradually.'_

The tug increased again, but when he reached what he estimated to be around twenty-five feet, the tug spiked up in strength. His mother cried out again.

'_You cannot go any closer than this, or we will be tied even more tightly. However, if you maintain a distance of approximately twenty-seven feet, the connection is balanced and will start to weaken.'_

Naruto arched his eyebrow at the demon fox. 'So, Kyuu…that pretty much means I'm going to be stalking her for a while.'

'_Kit, you stalked the Uchiha boy for years. It should be second nature for you by now.'_

'Ugh, don't bring that up. At least not now. I'm starving, and I want ramen.' Naruto complained. 'Let's go back and wait.'

So he waited at Ichiraku for Minato. He sat without ordering and waited diligently. He waited some more. An hour later, he couldn't wait any longer and ordered several bowls. Then he waited again. Half an hour later, he ordered several more bowls. And waited.

Naruto felt his heart sink.

Minato wasn't coming.

He'd been forgotten, and it was by his only friend in this time. Forgotten and abandoned. There was no way her seal still hurt, so why wasn't he here yet?

Naruto scowled. Minato hadn't spared a single glance back at him when he left with his mother, but of course it should be expected. He should have expected it, but the days spent with Minato had been so good that he had completely forgotten Minato was his father, the same one he resented for abandoning him even if he did have a good reason.

He remembered clearly now that this wasn't timeline, and Minato belong to his mother in this future. He needed to get used to the idea that he couldn't be close to them because, at most, he could only hold the position of a best friend which made him an _outsider_. Naruto didn't have the right to infringe upon their happiness. They wouldn't know what to do with a son their own age, and even if he used his time jutsu to merge into his baby form, little Naruto would end up with a tortured adult mind who didn't know how to behave within a normal family.

Minato couldn't be his because in the end, he would be his mother's and little Naruto's.

His happiness at seeing his mother withered. Naruto felt like crying. This was why he had tried to stay away from human interactions, because these people weren't _his_. He shouldn't get close to people here because no new relationship could replace the ones he had with his precious people. Human interaction between him and the people of this world were insubstantial and mere distractions. He didn't need or want _any_ of it, or so he tried to convince himself.

Naruto looked up to the cloudy sky with jaded eyes before hardening his resolve. It was time to get his seals tattooed, run some important errands, and start saving Konohagakure like he had vowed to.

Naruto felt ugly in his jealousy.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay…I'm not sure how that turned out…feedback please?

There's an excellent story I'd like to recommend: Wandering Fox by Florentine Quill. It's not labeled under Minato & Naruto characters, but it has lots of father & son interaction (not shounen-ai/yaoi). It's one of the most enjoyable Mina+Naru stories I've read. Unfortunately, it's been discontinued, but don't let that put you off of reading it!

Next chapter: Naruto's resolve. Can Minato fix this? **Hmm, which characters should I add into the mix?**

_May 27, 2012_


	8. Not Mine

**A/N:** This was a difficult chapter to write. Hopefully it isn't too confusing.

It seems like the chapters are getting harder and harder. But I'm not stopping! If I do stop updating for over one and a half weeks, send me a review so I'll _have_ to look at the story when I reply to everyone. Thank you for all your support!

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai**, timetravel.

* * *

**Chapter 8: Not Mine**

"But Kushina, I've run both Diagnosis X and Diagnosis Y on your seal twice already! I also proved to you in two different ways that Kyuubi doesn't have…"

Minato's eyes drifted over a clock. He suddenly leapt to his feet, violently knocking his chair over.

Kushina jumped in surprise. "What's wrong?"

His face paled as he stared at the clock. "I-I was with a friend before taking you home. I promised him ramen but I lost track of time! I just left him there… Oh, shit…"

"Minato, language," Kushina reprimanded.

"It's allowed in this situation!"

He knew enough about Naruto to know that betrayal was considered the greatest offense, and abandonment fell solidly within that category. He had certainly abandoned him.

"Kushina, I have to go. We'll go over this another day, okay?"

"Mina…" She started to say, but he was already gone, leaving behind a confused and disheartened redhead.

He disappeared and reappeared at Ichiraku in a blur of yellow, zipping the entire way in less than half a minute. He hastily ducked in, knowing it was impossible for Naruto to still be there but hoping otherwise. There was only one blond head to the right, but it was ugly compared to Naruto's shade of gold. "Teuji-san! Was Naruto here? Blond hair, blue eyes."

"So you're the one he was waiting for!" Teuji shot him a withering glare. "You missed him by…thirty minutes."

Throwing back a remorseful 'thanks', Minato zipped towards ANBU Headquarters, berating himself the entire way. Naruto had waited over two hours for him, only for him to never show. Two hours! Minato feared the anger and disappointment in Naruto's eyes but knew he deserved it for breaking his promise and Naruto's trust – that hard-earned trust that Naruto had given only to him, the Hokage, and maybe to the owners of Ichiraku.

God, what had he been thinking? A chance to study obscure Sealing Arts was no excuse!

He knocked apprehensively on Naruto's door but received no reply. He knocked again, this time trying to sense Naruto with his chakra even though he knew Naruto's chakra control was far better than his could ever hope to be, and that he would never be able to find the Hunter-nin that way.

After a third fruitless knock, he zipped to Naruto's playground, the enormous Forest of Death, and conducted the most thorough but quick search he could, only to find nothing yet again. The only other place he knew to go was the Hokage Tower.

Standing in front of the Sandaime's desk, he spoke before the Hokage could greet him.

"Hokage-sama, did Naruto come by?" Minato blurted out.

Konoha's leader gave him a calculating look which made the ANBU Captain squirm before sighing heavily, looking like someone had died.

"Naruto left several minutes ago for a mission." Minato received his second withering glare of the evening. "He suddenly informed me that he has been falling behind in his duties and was adamant about beginning them immediately. From what I saw of him in the short five minutes, he has regressed emotionally. He is now solely focused on his work."

Minato winced.

"I will not ask the cause, Minato-kun, but I hope you can pull him back out. He won't be back for two months at the least and six at most, and he may return not as Naruto but as his full Hunter-nin identity." Sarutobi warned. "Do not allow him to leave in this state. A hero should not save his people out of obligation but out of the desire to protect. Currently, he is on autopilot in the former." The Hokage looked back down at his paperwork. "He and his partner exited by the North Gate."

Minato bowed hastily and disappeared in a messy cloud which revealed his panic. Even at his fastest, he felt the trip to the gate lasted ages. He asked himself _again_: how could he have forgotten about Naruto? The debate on seals and Kyuubi was always fascinating, but hadn't he admitted his fixation on his friend just hours ago?

The moment he stepped past the gate, what he saw – or what he didn't see – halted him. There was neither a physical nor a chakra trail. If he didn't know better, he would have thought the North Gate hadn't been used since early morning. It would be impossible to find him without some clue. He might as well apply some of that genius he'd been lauded for and analyze what kind mission the Hunter-nin would take. Naruto was traveling northward. The chance of his destination being the Hot Water Country or Frost Country in the northeast was small; they were relatively calm and on friendly terms with Fire. Lightning Country further beyond was unlikely since they had their own Hunter-nin force. The territories north of Fire were empty, so the only logical destination was Hidden Waterfall to the northwest. What cemented the guess were the three recent skirmishes along the border which Fire and Waterfall shared.

He took a step and became a blur of yellow.

_Where are you?_

* * *

After vanishing from Ichiraku in a near-silent puff of dark cloud, Naruto had walked mechanically into a shinobi tattoo parlor for his seals. Kinjutsu Tattoos was where he had inked the time jutsu seal on his hip; they were the best in all of the five Great Shinobi Countries, and he required the best.

The first seal he needed inked was his original Chakra Draining Seal which allowed his shadow clones to keep from expelling by absorbing foreign chakra from living sources like trees and animals around shinobi villages and, of course, from other shinobi. The only inconvenience was that the seal needed to be in contact with the source.

'If only Kage Bunshin didn't reject your stupid chakra, Kyuu,' Naruto complained in an attempt to take his mind off of Minato.

_'Hmph!'_ Kyuubi sent him an offended huff. _'My chakra is much too superior in quality for your pitiful shadow clones to handle.'_

'Superior, my ass,' Naruto shot back and snickered. 'It's like a lard of fat compared to my canola oil. The only way I can use it is when I get angry enough to liquefy that blubber.' He chuckled darkly and blocked off the outraged growls coming from his furry friend.

Naruto requested the seal to be placed on the pads of his little fingers. The triangular shape was formed by tiny, almost indecipherable symbols which only the most skilled would be able to ink accurately.

The second seal was his Enduring Henge Seal which allowed him to apply a henge that remained strong and unwavering, even after loss of concentration or consciousness. It was circular for stability, and the space within was filled with symbols spiraling inwards. He positioned these on the pads of his two large toes, middle fingers, and the top of his head – the five farthest points on his body. As long as none of these body parts got lopped off or the flesh burnt away, the henge would hold tightly – perfect for spy work.

These seals were all inked with a translucent white ink infused with his chakra to keep them as discreet as possible. The end product looked like scars which had healed over to leave barely noticeable blemishes on skin.

Naruto left the parlor feeling slightly less mechanical than when he entered. He still felt bitterness and betrayal, but productivity had dulled down some of the hurt. His next stop was the ANBU Armory for a temporary wakizashi until he had the chance to forge another.

As Naruto sprinted to over rooftop to the Headquarters, he studied the Hokage Mountain. He hadn't been up there once in the month he'd lived in this time. It was the most blatant evidence of what he had lost. The first time he tried to visit, he stopped only after taking several steps, noticing that the little alcove at the corner of Yondaime's right eye where he usually hid didn't exist yet. That realization had forced him deep into the Forest of Death for another night of tears, wondering if this was some kind of divine retribution for something wrong he had done in the past. The thought had spurred simultaneous crying and hysterical laughter. The term 'past' was now so muddled that there was no point in even attempting to clear everything up.

He had finally decided to refer to his own eighteen years of 'Past' with a capitalized 'P', and the Future of his own timeline with a capitalized 'F.' See? It wasn't as muddled anymore…

There was no time to go up there now. After he had become Hunter-nin, the visits had become routine – so routine that its original purpose and meaning had been lost. During childhood, he went up there to see the beauty of Konoha and remind himself of all the love and good in his beloved village. As time passed the trips became a habit and a type of therapy for him to wind down from mission stress. He may still have subconsciously felt the connection between the physical sight and the meanings behind it, but consciously, he had forgotten the reasons for his visits.

This last month, he had been selfish. Being preoccupied by his own stupid issues, he hadn't given much thought to the village. Sure, he gave his pledge and made plans with Sandaime-Jijii, but Konoha had become passing thoughts while his emotional relapses and Minato had taken the forefront of his mind. He finally fully comprehended that the latter two could cease to exist if he stopped spending time with people. Sandaime-Jijii was wrong about him. He was correct in that Naruto was emotionally stunted, but interacting with others did more harm than good.

It was time to stop being distracted and stop being selfish. _Konoha comes first._

As he walked through the training facility to the Armory, he couldn't help but let out a tiny smile at the ANBU who waved enthusiastically to him. It was bittersweet. They accepted him. They accepted him so easily even after knowing the angry, malicious chakra which struck fear in all the shinobi in that gymnasium. But would the ANBU still accept him when they find that, to them, his kind was their rival and enemy? It was like the question from his Past of whether his precious people would still accept him when they discovered his relation to Kyuubi.

The answer: No way.

But that was fine since he wouldn't be staying here much longer anyway.

After the Armory was the ANBU Library. He had to hurry. He had sensed Minato on the move. The ANBU Captain was currently positioned in front of his dorm room door. Thank goodness for his crazy chakra regimen or his control would still be as terrible as in his genin days where everyone could sense him, but he couldn't sense Kiba even if he stood right in front of him.

"ANBU-san, can I help you find anything?" The librarian to his left interrupted his thoughts. Naruto looked around but saw no one other than him and snorted inwardly at being called 'ANBU-san'.

"No thank you. I know my way around," he replied and hurried to the section for Sealing Arts. If he was going to be gone for several months as planned, he wouldn't be able to directly hinder Minato's progress on the Four Symbols Seal, so he'd just remove the sources of knowledge that the other Seal Master needed.

Naruto could sense Minato heading away from the building towards the Forest of Death. Good, that would give him enough time to get out of the village.

"Hokage-sama." Haikage materialized in the Hokage's office. "I request permission to travel outside of the village. It is time for me to fulfill my duty to Konoha. I will leave tonight for Takigakure to establish an alliance and move southward from there. I can guarantee Taki will be ours; I have an excellent offer that they will not pass up."

Sarutobi frowned behind his pipe. "This is quite sudden, Haikage-kun. Is there any reason for the rush?"

"Too much time has been spent on trivial matters. I have already wasted the month since my arrival. The village will suffer if I do not act."

"Why not leave tomorrow after a night of rest? You returned from a mission only this morning."

"No, Hokage-sama. It is best if I take my leave now before complications arise." Displeasure colored Haikage's words.

"Would that complication come in the form of Minato-kun who is currently running through Training Ground Forty-Four?"

"The term 'complication' encompasses all which hinder me in fulfilling my pledge to protect Konoha." Haikage answered mechanically, offering neither confirmation nor denial. "We have little over two years until war. Any more time wasted will be detrimental to your survival."

Sarutobi squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before giving in. "Very well. Whatever your reasons, I approve your request. I wish you good hunting, Haikage-kun."

The man in black gave a low bow and melted out of Konoha.

* * *

Minato was searching blindly. His yellow blur zigzagged through the empty forest, trying to catch any sign of human or chakra movement. He needed to hurry if he was going to find Naruto before the sun set.

Five minutes out of the village, he saw a black figure leaning against a tree. The figure felt dangerous regardless of his outwardly relaxed posture; it was like the man was surrounded by a thin layer of killing intent. Approaching cautiously, Minato saw he was dressed completely in black, from the black cloak to the ominous black mask. He seemed to suck in all light around him.

Minato readied himself for any sign of attack, but hostility never did much good. "Excuse me, sir. May I ask who you are?"

The man said nothing for half a minute as he seemed to appraise the ANBU Captain. He finally answered in a low but powerful voice which resonated through the air. "I am called Haikage, friend of Konoha."

Minato had never heard of a Haikage or a Haigakure, Hidden Village of Ashes. He didn't think Haikage was lying when he declared himself an ally, but the ANBU Captain didn't relax. "Haikaga-sama, I am searching for a friend who should be traveling through in this general direction. Have you seen anyone pass by?"

Haikage didn't answer for another half minute. Minato waited awkwardly but patiently, somehow knowing instinctively that this man would have the information he was seeking.

He nodded sharply and looked to his side. "Naruto."

A moment later, a dark figure materialized from the shadows right beside the Haikage, surprising the ANBU Captain. Minato hadn't even noticed a presence there.

"Minato! What are you doing out here? You're a mess." Naruto asked curiously at his disheveled state, sounding perfectly cheerful. Nothing revealed his thoughts of the incident at Ichiraku.

"I want to apologize to you about earlier," Minato said in a rush. "I didn't mean to leave you there, and I'm sorry I didn't return. I heard from Teuji-san that you waited over two hours. _I'm so sorry_."

Naruto rubbed the back of his head and gave a sheepish smile. "There's nothing to be sorry about. We all get sidetracked occasionally. Actually, I do it all the time."

"Then why are you leaving?" Minato was confused. Naruto's decision to leave and his actions now were completely at odds with each other. He knew the Hunter-nin had been upset; even Sandaime-sama had said so. But here, it looked like nothing was wrong, that this was just any other pleasant day.

"I reeeally need to do this mission. I was supposed to start earlier, but I kept pushing it back since it's pretty tedious." Naruto frowned petulantly. "But I can't get away with pushing it back anymore. Sucks right?"

"Aren't you mad at me for earlier? Is that not why you're leaving?"

"Of course not!" He replied in honest surprise. It seemed so real and so sincere, but Minato knew it a lie having received the disapproving glares of Teuji-san and Hokage-sama. He also knew the Hunter-nin was an expert Infiltrator and lived up to his title of the Master of Deception. If he wanted, Naruto could be anyone and anything.

"I'm so sorry. Please don't pretend with me. I don't think I could handle you hating me. Please at least tell me what you're thinking," Minato begged. He had to fix this before he lost Naruto forever; Hokage-sama had warned that his full Hunter-nin persona would take over if he left for the mission hiding behind falsities.

Naruto's face tilted in confused bewilderment. "What are you talking about? I'm not pretending at all–"

"Naruto!" Minato cut in harshly, realizing this approach wasn't working. "Stop faking!" Naruto made to retort but he cut him off again. "I know you're upset. Don't lie to me. I made a mistake. I left you there. But I'm trying to figure out how I can make it up to you. I can't do that if I'm talking to a fake. Show me your real face!"

The Hunter-nin's expression transformed into one of outrage, but seconds later, the facade crumbled.

"Minato…" Naruto whispered. He looked tired and defeated and barely hanging on. His shoulders slumped, and his eyes were shadowed by his bangs.

"Minato…I'm going crazy in that village. My emotions keep getting tossed around. You've seen it for yourself. It's painful. Every corner I turn, I expect to see my precious people, but they're never, ever there. They're all gone. I just keep getting reminded that there's nothing left for me. The only thing I have left is my pledge to Sandaime-Jijii and Konoha, and I _must_ fulfill that pledge. _I will never go back on my word."_

"No you have me! I'm in the village! Naruto, can't I be your precious person?" Minato tried to grab at loose threads.

Naruto shook his head angrily. "Minato, you can't be mine because you belong to this village. I, on the other hand, don't! I can only belong on the outside. Anything I gain on the inside will only add more to what I can't reach." Naruto lifted bitter, pain-filled eyes. "I don't have the right to call anything within Konoha mine except for my promise to protect it – as a whole. I won't be able to own anything there, ever. They'll never amount to anything, which is why human interactions are mere distractions."

Minato's chakra spiked as hurt filled his core at being called a 'mere distraction'. "What in the world are you talking about? You're a part of Konoha. Even if you say everyone is gone, you're still a part of it. The village itself is yours."

"This village isn't mine, Minato. Nothing in it is mine."

"Then what do you call our friendship? It's yours and mine, isn't it?" Minato had never felt so insignificant before; his friendship with Naruto was one of his most treasured possessions, but Naruto, here, was saying it would never carry any weight for himself. "_Answer me,_ _Naruto_! Is it not yours and mine? Ours?"

The Hunter-nin fidgeted and averted his gaze to the ground. Minato stayed silent, refusing to make a sound until he received a response.

After minutes of stillness, Naruto glanced back at the taller blonde. Minato met that glance with unwavering cerulean eyes. The younger blonde quickly dropped his eyes back down, but yielded a small, hesitant nod.

Minato breathed a shuddering sigh of relief and smiled. Their friendship was reciprocated.

"If we can be friends, it's not impossible for others. You just have to open yourself to these possibilities instead of shutting yourself out."

"But that's just setting myself up for…" Naruto absently lifted his left arm towards his chest but noticed halfway and dropped it back down with a grimace. "No, I'll lose my sanity when I lose everything in the end. Minato…I've already lost my precious people twice. I won't be able to patch myself back together if I lose them a third time."

Minato was losing ground again.

"You said you made a pledge to protect Konoha, right?" Naruto narrowed his eyes at Minato's question. "Why do you have to do it on your own? Shinobi work best in teams. Many heads are better than one."

"Teams." Naruto barked out an ugly laugh, and his voice became arctic. "Minato, I'm a Hunter-nin. I'm at my best when I work alone. All but Hunter-nin work in teams. But regardless of how we work, no one will accept us."

Minato recoiled at the chill of those words. "What about Ferret and the others?"

Naruto snorted and arched a patronizing eyebrow. "They don't know I'm Hunter-nin. They think I'm one of their own, but once they find out otherwise, they'll hate me for what I am and how I operate. Don't forget, we're not as nice as ANBU kiddies. And just because of that, _your_ organization has been against _us_ since Corps was established."

Minato didn't know how to respond because it was true. He had also thought like that, though perhaps to a much lesser degree than most, until his mission with Akashiori who gave him a hint of the Hunter-nins' perspective. Even worse, the animosity all originated and was kept alive from the ANBU side.

Naruto ruffled his hair in frustration. "…I really have to go now…" He clenched his hand in the golden strands.

Suddenly, Naruto appeared right in front of him, eyes shifting as if conflicted. He raised a tentative hand to tug experimentally on a jaw-length eartail framing Minato's face, then gave the taller blonde a fierce hug.

"I'll find you when I get back in a few months," Naruto mumbled into a warm shoulder, "We'll figure this out then." He hastily released him as if burnt. After another quick tug on the hair, the Hunter-nin melted into the shadows.

* * *

Haikage was pissed at himself.

_What had just happened?_

Uzuhara had decided to stay _away_ from human interactions. Then he goes and _hugs_ the person he had decided to avoid most.

It had gone so well in the beginning. He had felt Minato coming a mile away, chakra signature in turmoil, and decided to humor the poor man. Haikage had created a shadow clone and henged himself into Uzuhara Naruto to play out the confrontation. His Uzuhara had been perfect until Minato became harsh and angry. That had thrown him completely off balance; he'd never faced any expression other than kind, protective, and playful.

After Uzuhara's mental composure had stumbled, Minato's every angry word and every frustrated expression had caused Uzuhara to fall apart to become Uzumaki Naruto. This was only the second time anyone had ever broken through, but last time Akashiori had been under torture.

Namikaze Minato was more dangerous that he had thought.

He didn't know what mind technique the ANBU Captain used, but he had somehow chipped away at the carefully constructed persona. Haikage needed to find out what it was and make sure no one else knew that technique. If it was a genjutsu, finding or creating a counter would be tricky. And if it was mind manipulation, he didn't know where to start researching.

Once Naruto had been revealed, the argument had been touching but irritating at the same time. Naruto couldn't give himself away, but he wanted so badly for Minato to understand a little of why he was so reluctant to make new ties. When Minato had tried to convince him there were people in the village that cared, especially Minato himself, Uzumaki Naruto had felt warm and loved, but Uzumaki also knew to be wary.

Then Minato just _had_ to mention teams. 'Teams' was a difficult concept for him. He had both good and bad experiences with teams, possibly more bad than good. He had been much happier when training and traveling alone, which was partly why he chose the Hunter-nin Corps over ANBU. The other part was that when you worked alone, no one was in a position to betray you. Of course, that comment had transitioned smoothly over to the ANBU vs. Hunter-nin hate-indifference relationship. People disliked Hunter-nin because they didn't understand this minority of tormented souls. Everyone just stereotyped them as heartless killers and forgot that they too were protectors of the village, just like ANBU but working under a different system.

Minato's silence had hurt. Deep down, Naruto had hoped Minato would show a bit of support for Naruto the Hunter-nin. None had come, and that had stung. He decided the confrontation had lasted too long and was about to end it, but Minato had been so remorseful and so sweet and so desperate. Uzumaki Naruto's compassionate heart couldn't stomach leaving him in such a troubled state, so he had hugged him. He had hugged him and tugged on Minato's eartails that he liked so much.

It was a stupid thing to do, but he felt happy after doing it. This just further proved that human interactions were unhealthy for his sanity, but he had felt _happy_.

Ugh. Now he'd completely slipped out of the Haikage persona and was having a difficult time retrieving it – a lost cause. He might as well relax his mind as Uzumaki Naruto until Haikage was needed.

It was around midnight that Naruto decided to stop for the night.

'Kyuu, how are you feeling from our meeting with my mom?' He asked as he materialized in his mindscape.

'_I am fine, kit. Kushina is the one who will be having difficulties.'_ Kyuubi nudged Naruto a hello with his nose, and his nose received nuzzle in return. _'My past self technically 'warped' out so it did the seal no damage. However, the seal still exists and is infused with residuals of my chakra which is why it reaches out to me when we are nearby.'_

'Sooo, does that mean when we're too close, her seal is trying to suck you back in, but when we're thirty feet away, our seal slowly sucks your residue chakra into us?'

'_Yes, that is basically what is happening. The connection will dissipate once we have acquired all of my residual chakra.'_

'That sounds like a pain…especially since I don't really want to see her right now.' Naruto burrowed against a warm, furry side. 'Aren't I supposed to want to see her? She's my mom.'

'_You didn't want to see your father at first either,'_ Kyuubi pointed out, _'But now you have become attached.'_

'Attached…' Naruto scowled at the word. 'I guess I can't deny that. I don't see Minato as my dad or the Yondaime anymore. He's more like a close friend. Remember what I decided in the laundry room?'

'_That you would treat him as you would a complete stranger.'_

'I'm doing a pretty good job of it, right?' Naruto looked up at Kyuubi for his opinion.

He agreed with a gentle swish of a tail against the boy. _'Then why do you refer to Kushina as your mother? Not once have you used her given name.'_

'I'm…not really sure. It doesn't feel right to call her anything other than 'mom.' Maybe because she has the seal. I can't help seeing her as a relative. Being friends never even crossed my mind.'

'_Perhaps that is a good thing. The two of you in one setting is a frightening thought._' The demon fox chuckled softly, creating pleasant vibrations under Naruto's back.

'That's not going to matter anymore though. I wasn't supposed to get close, but I let that stupid self take over. I'm done with that. Konoha's going to fall apart if we don't focus.' Naruto hugged close what he could grab of the large tail.

'_If you say so,'_ Kyuubi replied with carefully hidden skepticism._ 'What you want for yourself and what you want for Konoha do not need to conflict.'_

With a sleepy sweep of his eyes Naruto looked around his peaceful but tainted mindscape. After Yamanaka's evaluation, he and Kyuubi had restored his memories to their rightful places. 'Kyuu, that's that over there in the middle? I don't remember seeing it before.' He pointed at a bunch of exposed flowers growing awkwardly by itself in the empty grassy land.

'_Those are purple lilacs, kit. They sprouted two weeks ago.'_

'What's it stand for?'

Kyuubi studied Naruto carefully from the corner of his eye. _'You will have to discover that for yourself.'_

'Oh, come on…please? I don't know if Taki will have a flower shop.'

'_Idiot, what village doesn't have a flower shop, especially one of Takigakure's size?'_ Kyuubi swatted him with a second affectionate tail. _'Just go to sleep. You have a long week ahead of you.'_

The boy nodded and snuggled into the warmth.

* * *

Haikage arrived at Takigakure after three days of travel and scouting. As expected of a village which boasted to have never successfully been invaded, its natural defenses were solid and its shinobi were strong. He hoped his missive had been well received.

"Welcome to Takigakure, Haikage-sama." The Takikage and Haikage sat across from each other in a comfortable office with a clear view of Waterfall's giant Hero Water tree. In the end, Haikage had chosen to use his black masked figure and 'Haikage of Konoha' name when conferring with village and country leaders, but only the leaders. He would be a secret among those of the highest positions but exist as rumors at most among the general public.

"Thank you, Takikage-sama. I am grateful for the time you have spared to allow this meeting."

"If I understand correctly, you would like to form an alliance between Konohagakure and Takigakure," the Takikage began in a diplomatically polite voice of steel. "What have you to offer?"

The two leaders spent the next several days deliberating both military and business aspects of the alliance.

Konoha offered reduced rates on coal for the next five years in return for access to the Waterfall Country borders to Grass and Earth Country. It was quite simple. Of the smaller nations, Taki was the second largest importer of coal from Stone. By gradually taking over much of that trade, Konoha could cut into Stone's yearly revenue and increase their own trade. Furthermore, the coal would originate from an independent company located outside of Fire but secretly owned by Konoha, throwing off suspicions of Fire Country's involvement.

The two men continued to negotiate further trade routes and ninja protocols. In the end, Haikage had managed draw up a five-year renewable agreement to claim sixty percent of Taki's various Earth Country imports, unrestricted access to its borders, the assistance of Taki's superior shinobi forces during times of need, and permission to establish the beginnings of a widespread information network useful to both.

Finally, as an act of goodwill to cement the alliance, Haikage made a daring offer.

"Takikage-sama, to express gratitude for your outstanding hospitality, I would like to offer a final gift." Haikage waited for the village leader's permission to continue. "We have not always seen eye-to-eye in the past, but I hope this alliance will allow us to form peaceful relations for many years to come. I know of one man who holds a threatening grudge against Takigakure. I am sure you know who I am referring to." The Takikage tensed and nodded warily at the mention of Takigakure's order to assassinate the Shodaime Hokage around seven decades ago.

"I present to you the option of his elimination."

The Takikage was unable to hide his shock. "His elimination? That is impossible. We have sent team after team, but none have managed."

"I know of a way, and I myself will accomplish this task." Haikage said confidently, remembering the time when he'd killed the man in the Fourth Shinobi World War.

The leader thought back on the threat of the traitor who carried the secret of Taki's prized technique and had killed all of the village elders. There was no knowing when that insane man may return to destroy the village out of hate and revenge. The Takikage nodded sharply. "Haikage-sama, I accept."

Haikage nodded and smiled viciously under his mask. "I will return within three weeks' time with his head and what may remain of his body. We will finalize the documents at that time. Takikage-sama, consider Kakuzu eliminated."

The man in black faded out of the room.

* * *

Haikage arrived back in Takigakure with four days to spare. It had taken him much longer to locate and chase down the missing-nin than he had expected.

Over the month and a half he had been in the past, Haikage wondered when and how he should get rid of the future pain-in-the-asses that would eventually screw Konoha. He could kill them, put them out of commission, turn them to Konoha's side, or discourage them from attacking. It was all about timing and consequences…

He might be from the Future, but that didn't mean he knew who died, where, when, how, why, and who they killed before they died. However, he did know that majority of the best shinobi, legit or missing-nin, had participated in the Fourth Shinobi World War. That meant he had a general idea of who could become future pain-in-the-asses. Why not get rid of the worst of them now, and why not benefit from them in more than just the bounty?

"Takikage-sama, I have returned." Haikage bowed and held out a scroll stained with dried blood. "Within this containment scroll are Kakuzu's head and his five hearts."

The Taki leader gasped as Kakuzu's mangled, bloody remains were unsealed. "H-How…?"

"I merely knew his weaknesses and a technique with which to defeat him." He let a smirk form on his masked face as he watched the Takikage's eyes widen at the simple response spoken in a careless manner.

"E-Excellent work, Haikage-sama."

"Thank you." His tone was low but pleasant. If it weren't for the mask, it could have been called cheerful. "Two and a half weeks have passed since we drafted our alliance. Do the terms still hold?"

"Yes, certainly," the Takikage replied firmly.

'Ahh, perfect,' Haikage thought smugly. Although the idea had been a bit risky and could have backfired, this was why he put off signing the alliance until after he killed Kakuzu. Not only did it give the Takikage time to make certain he was truly comfortable partaking in every aspect of the agreement, it also proved Haikage's, and by extension Konoha's, strength and confidence. He already knew this alliance would work out; it was fair and safe and offered more wealth for Takigakure than any other country. He just needed to make certain Takigakure wanted to be _loyal_. Grass may be Stone's underhanded way into Fire Country, but now that Konoha had Waterfall Country, Stone would have no easy way to enter Fire once he took care of a few things in Grass.

His next stop would be River Country located south of Grass and Rain and divided Wind Country from Fire.

* * *

Minato walked out of the ANBU cafeteria, wondering how Naruto was doing. Three months had passed since the Hunter-nin had left, but time seemed to drag. He missed taking meals together and hanging out in his room. Talking with Kushina about seals wasn't fun anymore, and he couldn't seem to make any progress on the Four Symbols Seal. After a month, Kushina had gotten fed up with him 'moping around' everywhere and sucker punched him, which snapped him out of it until he passed Ichiraku.

He knew it was pathetic. Naruto said they would talk when he returned in a few months. Hokage-sama said Naruto would be gone for two to six months. Where had he lost his abundance of patience? Probably back in the forest when Naruto had tugged on his hair. That had been the singularly most simple yet charming thing anyone had ever done to/for him. It beat the time when Kushina had discreetly slipped into his hand a containment scroll of a home-made boxed-lunch before he left for a week-long mission. The lunch had been delicious, but the tug was sweeter.

Back in his room, Minato settled on his bed where he had sat when Naruto had flopped over his legs. That had been fun. That had been comfortable.

God, it sounded like he was pining. It was embarrassing and…

Before he could think deeper on the issue, a red mission scroll dropped into his inbox. Red for urgent.

With the scroll clutched tightly in his hand, his yellow blur flew over rooftops. Green was for regular summons to Mission Control. Yellow was 'come as soon as possible' summons with mission details. And Red was for 'drop everything and report' summons. This scroll was red, lined with silver edges: Drop everything and report personally to the Hokage now!

These were extremely rare. Most shinobi never received one in their careers, and many didn't believe they even existed.

The Hokage didn't bother with greetings. "Minato, I need you to lead an urgent search and retrieval mission."

"Yes, Hokage-sama. Who are we to retrieve?"

"…Uzuhara Naruto."

* * *

**A/N:** Now it's Minato's turn to fall apart :P

I was considering the idea of containment seal tattoos on the body, but that'd be like cheating. There have to be some constraints, or else everyone would be invincible!

Next chapter: Minato to the rescue!

_May 31, 2012_


	9. Home

**A/N:** Thank you for all your reviews! This chapter turned out much, much, much darker than I had planned. I hope you won't be upset with me. It's DARK.

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Warning:** Mentions of torture and rape in this chapter. Read at your own discretion.

* * *

**Chapter 9: Home**

Minato's breath hitched. He felt like something had pierced his heart and carved out a chunk of flesh before twisting around twice more. "N-Naruto? Is missing?"

The Hokage nodded gravely, face more strained than Minato had ever seen. "He usually sends a fox summon each week to report his progress, but I have yet to receive one in two weeks. At first, I assumed it merely slipped his mind, but Naruto in his full Hunter-nin mindset rarely makes trivial mistakes such as this."

"Can we not send our summons to search the Summoning Plane for his foxes?" The ANBU Captain suggested frantically, fists clenching and unclenching to distract himself from the panic growing inside him.

"I thought so as well and made an attempt with my monkeys. However, Naruto's summons are of a…different origin. They do not exist in the same plane as typical animal summons."

Minato grit his teeth in frustration. He had never read or heard of the existence of another Summoning Plane even in his extensive study on Sealing Arts. Jiraiya-sensei had never mentioned anything like that either. But this wasn't the time for that!

"Hokage-sama, what did his last summon say?"

"Naruto's last update was from between River and Wind south of the Rain border reporting his plan to return within two weeks. However, he has not yet arrived nor has he sent another update," his forehead creased.

"That area has always been hostile territory to Fire Country, especially the land surrounding Amegakure. The recent skirmishes along those borders have only added to the danger. I am dispatching your team to his last known location. Not only do you know him best, but your team is also the best tracker in Konoha. Naruto's trail will be difficult to track. Notify me of your location regularly. Make haste!"

"Yes, Hokage-sama!"

Once at ANBU Headquarters, the ANBU Captain paced impatiently as he waited for his team to gather. "Lion, Leopard, Jaguar! Where is Tiger?"

"Captain, I last heard he was headed to the Training Facility."

"Fuck," Minato growled. "I'll get him. Meet me at the West Gate immediately!"

All three ANBU-nin flinched as Cheetah cursed. Their Captain almost never swore; it went against his principles of proper etiquette. And if he did, it was only when something had gone terribly wrong – incidents involving his teammates. This must be worse if he was swearing for something outside of their team. Not wasting any more time, their Captain scowled and activated the Hiraishin kunai on Tiger and disappeared in a bright yellow flash. The remaining three glanced at each other in silent alarm before they also shunshin-ed hastily out of the hall.

Once all five had gathered at the gate several minutes later, Cheetah gestured jerkily for them to depart, only revealing their mission once they were traveling at full speed.

"We have a Silverlined-Red for search and retrieval," he passed them the scroll. "The target is a Konoha shinobi, Uzuhara Naruto. I'm sure you have all heard of or met him at Headquarters. He has been on a solo mission in the western nations for the last three months. We have heard nothing from him since two weeks ago." He paused for a moment. "If you have any suspicions of betrayal, I myself vouch for his loyalty to Konoha." All four teammates nodded their complete trust in their Captain. And if they thought it strange that an ANBU shinobi was taking a solo mission – and a long-term mission at that – none voiced their concern.

"When we last heard from him, he was in hostile territory south of Rain. As we all know, Rain is notorious for its unforgiving treatment towards all foreigners. With his massive chakra stores, he must be in dire circumstances to be incapable of sending a summon. At this time, he is either imprisoned and suppressed," Cheetah swallowed thickly behind his mask, "…or dead."

Cheetah's teammates knew to remain silent when he did not continue the briefing. They had all seen how close Uzuhara and their Captain had become, and it was obvious the typically collected and level-headed man was having difficulty maintaining his composure. He was well known throughout ANBU for his composure during missions, so what was it about Uzuhara that made him lose control? They feared the consequences if Uzuhara was truly found dead.

The silence stretched for miles before he resumed speaking, his voice now grounded and determined. "Uzuhara Naruto's skills rival mine." Four pairs of eyes widened in disbelief. "His chakra control is better than the best I have ever seen. He primarily uses Wind jutsu which is his chakra affinity, but is well versed in all types. I believe he may have developed an affinity for Lightning as well." A wry grimace graced his hidden features as he thought back to Naruto's Combat Assessment where his own water jutsu had been turned against him as a conductor for electricity. That had been an impressive blow, and Naruto had done it with a broken, mangled arm.

"His taijutsu and kenjutsu are unpredictable but brilliant. He likes to combine the two for deadly, offensive attacks. Finally, Uzuhara is a Seal Master and expert Infiltrator. This combination of skills, particularly the chakra control and infiltration specialization, may make him impossible to track even with our expertise."

That was saying a lot. ANBU Team 9 was the best tracker team, and they ranked fourth in the organization based on their operational capacity. Even more astounding was that none in the team was older than twenty. Reaching that rank with the oldest member at seventeen years of age and holding the position for three years was unheard of. Team 9 was a force to be reckoned with and still had room for growth.

But just now, he had suggested that the best may not have the skills to track Uzuhara.

"Hokage-sama has assigned no time limit for this mission. We are to retrieve Uzuhara no matter what."

For the remaining two days of grim travel, they said nothing aside from the bare necessities, all five busy mulling over the mysterious shinobi that was Uzuhara Naruto.

Leopard and Tiger had been in the gymnasium when Uzuhara had fought Jackal and his lackeys. They'd seen for themselves the power the blonde held within that lean, unassuming body. When it had been unleashed against the six veteran ANBU, all of the surrounding shinobi had been shocked at this rookie's competence and drive. The guy kept fighting with more skill than his attackers even when he looked close to falling dead! After that impressive performance, they had to admit Uzuhara's skills were certainly up there and the possibility of rivaling their Captain wasn't far-fetched.

They also knew what Cheetah meant by 'massive chakra stores.' Uzuhara fought until the end with one massive amount of chakra, and when he visibly snapped, a second, even greater chakra had replaced the first. To have both enormous chakra sources suppressed seemed impossible, which could only lead to the conclusion that Uzuhara was dead.

However, to be killed with those skills seemed just as unlikely…

The team arrived at the intersection of Rain, Wind, and River borders in record time, only passing one skirmish along the way. Turning to his team, Cheetah addressed them with ANBU hand signs for caution.

_:Leopard, Tiger, and Lion to the north; Jaguar with me towards the south. Keep alert and radios on.: _With a collective nod, the two teams split in search of hints to Uzuhara's whereabouts.

Even without Uzuhara's own stealth making it difficult to track him, the area itself made the task tricky; there was evidence of skirmishes and fights everywhere. Trampled ground, toppled trees, burnt vegetation. The damage was so severe that they could barely distinguish one mark from another.

BZZZT

"_Leopard here. We're fifteen miles north of split point. We think we've found Uzuhara's trail… Damn, you've got to see this for yourself. This is crazy…."_

Before Leopard's voice faded out, Cheetah and Jaguar were already on the move. Cheetah grabbed his teammate by his waist and activated Hiraishin to Leopard's three pronged kunai.

They reappeared at a devastating scene. A half square mile of the forest had been completely demolished. Charred remains of vegetation, decaying corpses, and shattered weapons littered the ground. A quarter of the earth looked overturned, and another quarter was flooded with blood tinted water.

"Naruto…this is definitely Naruto's work," the ANBU Captain muttered, professionalism slipping as he stared in awe. He could feel the residue from Naruto's chakra still crackling in the air. "Don't step over there! That's one of his explosive seals, and those pitch black ashes are from a technique only he would use." Cheetah bent down to examine the rancid remains of a decaying body. "This is about a week and…three to four days old."

"Captain, these shinobi are from Rain." Tiger held up a battered forehead protector with an engraving of three vertical lines. "No, almost all from Rain, and there are some unidentified ninja here." Team 9 swept their eyes over the broken bodies. There had to be over a hundred.

"Spread out and search! And take caution; our greatest threat here is Naruto's explosives. They're deadly, and they'll be everywhere."

The Team 9 carefully picked their way through the rubble and mud. Minato couldn't stem the pride and affection that welled up within him. This was the first time he had seen Naruto's work – not training or combat practice but _real_ work – and the damage was mind-boggling. To his left, there was a group of shinobi with deep gouge-lines crisscrossing their bodies. If he wasn't mistaken, that was the work of the '_Fuuton: Shinkuuka (Wind Release: Vacuum Wave)' _jutsu. He also passed a decent sized crater which was most likely formed by the tornado-like blast of '_Fuuton: Atsugai (Pressure Damage)_.'

Minato absently wondered who would make it out alive if he and Naruto fought each other in a life-or-death battle. No, he never wanted to fight against Naruto like that.

BZZZT

"_This is Leopard in the west. There's nothing in this area."_

"_Lion. No sign of Uzuhara in the east side."_

"_Jaguar. South side is clear."_

"_Tiger. The north is also clear."_

Cheetah sighed in relief. _"I found nothing around the center either. We at least know he hasn't died here. Everyone, circle the perimeter for any trail leading out and gather up north."_

When they regrouped, Tiger reported a trail leading northward.

As they pursued the trodden path to what they were sure was Amegakure, rain began to drizzle down on them. The dark sky and depressing wetness wore down what little optimism they had remaining, leaving them looking and feeling like drowned cats. The muddy trail soon ended at a side gate of the village's outer wall, an ominous, looming structure with seemingly impenetrable defenses.

:_How do we know for sure that he's somewhere in there…?: _Lion hand-signed.

Five pairs of eyes swept up the wall in apprehension, all thinking the same question. They only had assumptions to follow and no idea where Uzuhara would be if he had been captured. Infiltrating Amegakure was always dangerous, but entering blind without direction or target was stupid on top of that.

It was the Captain's call to enter or not. Climbing the wall was out of the question. They could take the place of guards, but verification was conducted every half hour. Visitors were required to pass through multiple security checks and were monitored throughout their stay. The use of Henge in Ame was risky; Ame-nin were skilled genjutsu users and were more in tune with techniques of disguise. Was there no way in?

An idea began to form in Cheetah's mind. Their goal was to enter undetected, and if entering among people was impossible, they just needed to get in without mingling. There was one feature shared by all large villages, one that was out of sight and out of mind: the sewage system. People never thought past their own homes in regards to waste, and any who knew of its existence avoided thinking about such revolting aspects of daily human life. It was widespread and most likely unmonitored.

Cheetah suddenly sucked in a sharp breath as another idea followed. He recalled a puzzling incident from months ago which he had forgotten to explore. _Gamabunta._ The Chief Toad summon had somehow recognized Naruto by chakra alone, even when they had never physically met. This might be the only lead they could find.

_:Wait, I think I have a way to check,:_ he signed quickly.

"_Kuchiyose no Jutsu…"_ he whispered.

A small puff of cloud materialized in his outstretched hand. When the cloud dissipated, a little red toad sat obediently, eyeing him warmly.

"Don't speak, Gamata, just listen," Cheetah whispered. "I want you to carry messages between me and Gamabunta. Would you do that for me?"

Gamata smiled.

"I need you to ask him how he can sense Naruto's chakra and if he can locate Naruto."

Gamata vanished with a puff, and returned a minute later. "Chief says he can't tell you, but he can sense him if he uses chakra," the little toad reported in whispered croaks.

"Can you sense him?"

Gamata shook an apologetic negative. "I've never met him."

"Can you ask Gamabunta to send someone who might?"

He vanished and returned. "Chief says Gamakichi." Another puff sounded and a light weight plopped on his head.

"Shh! Gamakichi, don't say anything," Cheetah cut off the toad's usual exuberant greetings. After a promise of treats and a gentle rub on the toad's head, Gamata puffed away. "Gamakichi, Gamabunta says you can sense Naruto's chakra," he whispered, lifting the tiny toad off his head. "Can you sense him now?"

Gamakichi furrowed a toad brow. "No," he answered in an irritated croak.

"Not even a little?"

"Maybe," he closed his eyes and frowned. Several minutes later, he hopped and croaked loudly. "In there. Maybe!"

"Shhh! Inside the walls?" A little pressure around his heart loosened as the toad nodded. "Can you tell where?"

"No. Do I still get a treat?" The toad croaked hopefully.

"Yes you do. Can you find him if you get closer?"

Gamakichi hopped happily. "Maybe."

"Alright, if you find him, I'll give you an entire bag of treats."

"Okay! Got it! No problem!"

"Shhhh!" He turned to his teammates.

_:Jaguar, you're best at stealth. Take Gamakichi and see if you can get in and find Naruto's location from underground,:_ Cheetah instructed while studying the wall with narrowed eyes.

Nodding, Jaguar disappeared from view.

An hour later, he returned with jittery shoulders, still gagging from the smell of waste. _:The entrance underground is loosely guarded. The Amegakure leader's tower is located in the center which holds a high security prison deep underneath. The only other prison is for civilians, __so Uzuhara should be somewhere in the tower. _I've scouted it out.:

_:As if this place isn't secure enough,:_ Lion commented with a shake of his head, irritation bleeding into his hand signs.

_:Alright, let's head in. Tiger, stay behind as lookout.:_

After ten minutes of slow, careful maneuvering, four Konoha-nin disguised as Amegakure civilians finally made it inside the village sewage system. They rushed through the putrid, winding tunnels with Jaguar leading the way. The stoic man cringed and signed, _:It took me a few tries to find the right path, but there's a consistent pattern to it.:_

Jaguar slowed to a stop next to a rusted door and nodded to his teammates before wrestling it open to enter the drop shaft with a ladder leading upwards. _:Captain, I already disengaged the traps.:_

Cheetah nodded his appreciation for both Jaguar and cleaner air. _"Kushiyose no Jutsu…"_

Gamakichi popped onto his head again. "Gamakichi, can you find him in there?"

"Maybe…"

The ANBU Captain sighed in frustration. "Let's go then."

As they were about to begin climbing, a loud croak shocked all four shinobi into whipping out their kunai.

"Minato! I found him! I found him! A big flash of chakra!" Gamakichi hopped gleefully. "One bag of treats?"

"Yes, that's great, but shhhhhhh!"

* * *

Naruto stared, eyes half-lidded, at the thick metal door across the cell. Perfect. Just perfect. He was in another dingy cell with wrists shackled against a wall, again. He felt painfully sore all over and barely had the strength to draw shallow breaths, and the Ame-nin had _left him hanging on the damn wall_. The air was chilly and his clothes, which were now tattered rags, did nothing to retain heat.

If he could, he would have banged his head back on that stupid wall at his horrible luck. Instead, he smirked wildly.

Negotiations in River Country had been a little disappointing but he had deemed it good enough for now and had headed back north to run one last sweep of the area. When he had closed in on Rain, he somehow found himself pulled into a fight between shinobi of a small ninja village and a mass of shinobi from Rain.

This was more than a skirmish. It was Rain's arrogant show of power to its surrounding villages. It was domination.

Neither Naruto nor Akashiori could figure out how it happened. One second he was running, and the next second he was being attacked. It baffled him how he hadn't sensed anything until he had already stepped into the clearing. Then he got dumped into a violent free-for-all. It was chaos and pandemonium and madness. Shinobi kept attacking him when all he wanted to do was get out of the mess. His patience wore thin with every idiot that attacked him even after seeing how easily he'd taken out the previous idiot.

So he decided if everyone was going to kill each other, why not help out so he could be on his way to Konoha sooner, and so they didn't have to waste much more of their precious time in dying? It was an act of goodwill, you see.

Akashiori had to admit, it was fun. There was a strange sort of satisfaction in blowing people up with big, flashy jutsu instead of the cleaner, more efficient ones he usually used on missions. Wow, didn't he sound like a bloodthirsty psycho? He snorted to himself. He was in his ruthless Hunter-nin persona and was a psychologically traumatized killer. If that didn't amount to a bloodthirsty psycho, he didn't know what did.

In no time, he had taken out half of the shinobi and tripled the size of the clearing. He didn't lose control. No, he intentionally and gleefully let some of his control go. Unmasked and disguised, Akashiori was having a ball. So he blasted and sliced and then blasted some more.

That was until reinforcements from Rain arrived.

First, it was another large group of more skilled shinobi – B-rank. They were easy. Then a mid-sized group of A-rank shinobi. Challenging. Finally, a small group of five terrifyingly strong shinobi arrived. These were impossible. Amegakure's leader had had enough of the devastating damage to his forces and came personally to see what had gone so wrong with the simple village takeover. Apparently he received alarming reports of an unrivaled enemy threat and came to fix things himself because the first thing the man did was sweep the battlefield for him.

The instant the leader's eyes met his, Akashiori knew he was screwed. He'd heard about this man during the Fourth Shinobi World War because this was the dolt that turned Akatsuki into a homicidal peacemaker.

Hanzou.

He knew he couldn't beat Hanzou – at least not yet. Give him a few more years of intense training and he could probably manage with difficulty, but definitely not right then; this man was recognized by everyone as the strongest ninja of this time. And as he predicted, he got flattened on his ass by the guy, then knocked out by the creepy poison he breathed out.

Then began the interrogation – and don't forget the torture that always comes as a set. They had taken his pack but couldn't get through his seals, and they couldn't tell who he was or where he was from by the non-descript clothes he had been wearing. His new henge seals had helped as well, modifying his appearance to a brown-haired, brown-eyed, unremarkable man, until they decided to stick his hands in fire as part of the torture programme. They had been shocked at the sudden change but ecstatic at seeing his true appearance with the distinctive whisker-like scars on his cheeks. He could only hope that the skin-colored paint hiding his Konoha tattoos held.

After realizing with another shock that their prisoner immediately healed everything they threw at him, the Ame-nin had taken to dosing him under massive amounts of poison to stop him from misbehaving while they interrogated him.

Who are you?

Where are you from?

What were you doing there?

Where you alone?

Did someone send you?

What do you know?

_Tell us what you know!_

He was so drained all the time. His was physically drained. The poison made it almost impossible to keep food down, and his and Kyuubi's chakra were spent on keeping him alive. He was sapped of sustenance and of life giving chakra. But mentally… Mentally he was overwhelmed – 'flooded' if you wanted to be poetic. He relived terrible flashbacks of his previous torture, memories of dead comrades and bloody battlefields, the anguish of betrayal and loss, and finally loss of his entire world. Sometimes he wanted to weep. Other times he wanted to cackle. A few rare times, he wanted to see Minato's smile.

Neither Naruto nor Akashiori had ever been tortured by poison before, and he realized it was worse than physically violent torture because now he was in constant pain, and different levels of pain depending on the stage of the poison. At least injuries from physical torture, no matter how severe, were superficial for his jinchuuriki body. Poison, on the other hand, tried to kill everything inside at once. And in this jail cell, he had the pleasure of suffering both. The vomiting, shivers, hallucinations, crawling pain under the skin, whippings, bone-breaking, and all other creative things they came up with. Surprisingly, it was his previous experiences with torture that allowed him to stay strong – perhaps he had developed some type of immunity… He snorted at the thought.

He needed to escape. He needed to escape before he lost the rest of his mind. But security was too tight, that paranoid bastard Hanzou. The entire village was in constant lockdown, so while he could have escaped a cave like the last time, this metal prison within metal walls was too much for him.

He had one other option, but there was a problem with that as well.

'Kyuu, how are you doing?' Naruto entered his thunderstorm mindscape, a safe haven which allowed him to escape the physical and psychological pain for short moments.

'_I don't know how you get yourself in these situations, kit,'_ the demon fox grunted. _'I can only stay two steps ahead of the poison.'_

'S-Sorry,' Naruto clenched his hands in the fur matted down from strain of healing his body. 'Thank you…'

'_Hanzou's black salamander poison is the most potent I have ever encountered. Even after the power from merging with myself of this time, I am having difficulty overriding all of the effects. If it was any other poison, you would have been fine,'_ Kyuubi grumbled at his injured pride.

'Why is this different?' The shivering blonde settled on the ground and chuckled darkly.

'_Black salamander poison attacks on three different levels. Firstly, it attacks your nervous system with neurotoxins which cause paralysis. Secondly, it eats away at your chakra coils. Not the chakra itself, but the coils, which is much deadlier. Thirdly, it corrodes your body tissues,'_ Kyuubi explained. _'Everything at once combined with physical injuries give me no time to rest.'_

'How long would I have to live if you stop healing me?'

The fox gave him a suspicious look._ 'Twenty seconds at most.'_

'Hmm, I wonder if that would be enough,' Naruto whispered thoughtfully.

Kyuubi growled a warning._ 'What idiocy are you scheming now?'_

Naruto's lips drew back in a feral grin. 'You know the little 'idiotic' jutsu that got us into this entire mess? My time jutsu might be our only option out.'

The fox fell silent.

'_Kit… For once, you may have suggested something intelligent.'_

'I can be a genius once in a while too,' Naruto attempted to form a triumphant smirk, but it twisted into a grimace. 'Can we dredge up enough chakra to go back to before we fought Hanzou?'

'_That is two weeks,' _Kyuubi took a moment to analyze their chakra stores._ 'If we store both our chakra, two weeks may be possible.'_

'How long will you need to store up enough chakra?' Hope entered his voice and the mindscape's storm abated. Maybe he could make it home.

Home.

Such a sweet word. He wanted to pet it and swallow it.

Kyuubi cleared his throat for Naruto's attention. _'With the amount I can spare after healing you and if I pull back from fully healing you, I estimate five days.'_

Naruto jumped. 'I-I think I can get enough of mine in that time too,' he said shakily, shoving his disturbing thoughts aside. 'I'll use mine for the activation boost and you'll pump everything you have plus whatever I have left over for the transport. We'll also have the mass of chakra from the twenty second time window before I die.'

'_Twenty seconds is a rough estimate. You will be a hair's breadth away from dying.'_

'Well, that won't really matter right?' Naruto giggled in another brief fit of madness. 'I'll die anyway if I stay. But if we can make it back that far, we'll merge with a healthy – healthier – body.'

'_We will only have one shot, kit,'_ Kyuubi sighed, shuddering from another wave of strain. _'It will tax our minds.'_

'We'll just have to make it count. Sleep will help right? Great, I'll get to it,' By the last word of the fumbled sentences, Naruto had curled up in a ball and forced his unstable mind into sleep, the idea of 'home' at the forefront of his thoughts.

Next day, the experimentation began. It seemed Hanzou had become very curious about his body. It was twenty four hours of precise torture for four days. They applied different jutsu and cut his body using excruciating methods, recording each response and each scream diligently. Hanzou came to observe time to time with a thoughtful expression on what you could see of his face that wasn't covered by his respirator. Naruto snarled at him each time but could feel himself breaking down.

It was the fourth day. The pain was excessive. He wanted it to stop. He refused to beg.

_I want to die._

_No, I want to go home._

He wanted to take the beautiful word stab it into his heart.

'K-Kyuu…h-how much more can I take?' Naruto sobbed when he finally had the chance to sink into his mindscape. An increasing number of disturbing thoughts and urges were popping into his mind. Always the word 'home.' Sneezing when gushing blood created tickling sensations. Wanting to rub his face against sponges. Wishing to hold Minato's hand tightly. Wondering if Sasuke would eat riceballs soaked in miso ramen broth with a kunai.

Naruto pouted through his sobs. Minato would never want to be friends with an uncoolest kid like him…

'_Your sky has cracked, and the ground has begun to quake regularly. I can see a fissure forming down the middle,'_ Kyuubi was lying as a pile of red fur, shuddering and breathing shallowly. The experiments were taxing, and both of them could barely move after storing all spare chakra for the time jutsu they planned to use the next day. However, they both knew it would be nowhere near the amount needed for two weeks of time travel. The experiments had taken more chakra to heal than the torture. _'You are almost broken, kit.'_

Naruto squeezed into Kyuubi's form on the dried, barren land and whimpered before he was again pulled out into consciousness.

When his hazy eyes opened, Naruto vaguely saw Hanzou's muscular figure standing in front of him, studying his bloody but half-healed body with that thoughtful expression again.

"Little warrior, you are fascinating," his deep, muffled voice filled the silence.

Naruto forced out a brief snarl before breaking into a coughing fit.

"Even after two weeks, you have yet to be broken," he gripped the blonde's chin and yanked it to the left to watch a gash on his cheek knit back together. "What will it take to break you?"

His grip tightened painfully. "You are the first to survive my poison. You withstood the torture. You endured the experiments. All others would have broken long before, my little warrior. I have not been this fascinated in many years," he chuckled cruelly. "If we could replicate your bloodlimit, my power could grow exponentially."

Naruto squeezed his eyes shut. A hand slapped his face, the sharp smack of skin hitting skin cutting through the chilly cell.

"Do not close your eyes!" Hanzou barked.

Naruto shot him a half-lidded glare and spat at the large man's face. "Idiot. It's not a bloodlimit," he informed him with a smirk.

The man wiped the spittle off his arm where it landed instead. "I did not want to resort to this since pride is a man's greatest asset. However, if you won't tell us what we want to know, I will follow through," he wrenched the prisoner's head backwards with a fistful of blond hair.

Hanzou trailed a lazy finger from his ear, down Naruto's exposed neck, across his collarbone, and slowly circled a nipple before grazing the hardening nub with a sharp nail.

Naruto's eyes snapped into those of a wild animal, and his body jerked away reflexively.

"NO!" A scream tore from his raw throat. He bared his sharp teeth and attempted to rip his bloody wrists out of the metal cuffs. "Get off me! Don't touch me you bastard!" The sounds from his throat grew into pitiful wails and dropped to become threatening growls. "Stop–"

Hanzou watched the panic-stricken reaction through eyes widened in surprise.

"So this is not your first," a sadistic leer twisted on his face, and he reached to stroke again.

Naruto snarled and snapped his jaw with abandon, terror taking root in his mind. _No, go away! Stop…d-don't touch! Run. Run. Run._

'_Kit! Kit! Focus, Naruto!'_ Kyuubi tried but failed to snap him out of his craze. _'Akashiori! FOCUS!' _He roared.

Naruto froze.

'Kyuubi.' Akashiori replied stonily.

'_Yes, Akashiori, focus. Half of your sky just shattered. We cannot let this go any further,'_ Kyuubi spoke quickly before the boy lost himself again. _'We must activate the jutsu now.'_

'We are early,' the Hunter-nin stated as he calmly analyzed their reserves.

'_It matters not. We must escape this encounter. Activate the jutsu _now_!'_ The demon fox barked out the command.

Akashiori nodded dutifully and began to gather the chakra they had stored over the last four days.

Hanzou stared quizzically at the boy's peculiar actions. His body had suddenly stopped wrestling against the restraints, eyes glazing over and focusing and glazing again repeatedly. For a moment he thought the boy had finally gone mad. Now though, his eyes were sharp as he nodded in agreement to something.

Then Ame leader felt it. A large mass of chakra was gathering around the boy's body, thick enough to form a visible, shimmering layer. Red. Blue. Violet. It engulfed every inch of his blood-stained skin, and before the Ame leader could move a muscle, all of that power was instantly sucked into a single condensed point on his hip.

"_Jikan Makikaeshi (Time Rewind) no Jutsu!"_

The boy winked out of the cell.

* * *

Before Akashiori opened his eyes, he took stock of his body and surroundings.

'We are still in the cell,' the Hunter-nin felt the cuffed wrists, drained body, and splitting headache. 'I-It was not enough,' he shivered from the beginnings of panic. "Do you know how far we have gone, Kyuubi?'

He received no answer.

'Kyuu?' Akashiori hastily sank into his mindscape.

As before, the sky was still half shattered, revealing the dark nothingness beyond. The ground was still split, the land was still barren, and what was left of the sky was still thundering. The only difference was the giant fox's trembling form. His nine tails lay limp on the ground, and he had buried his head beneath his front paws.

'Kyuu…?' Uzumaki Naruto's concern and distress slipped into Akashiori. He pressed an equally trembling hand on the fox's side to stroke upwards instead of downwards. He wondered if he could find 'home' under the fur. Maybe it was playing hide-and-seek. If he found it, he would glue 'home' to his forehead like that leaf exercise in Academy.

'_Kit, I am fine,'_ Kyuubi answered weakly. '_Merely mentally exhausted. However, our chakra stores have been restored to that of this time's.'_

'Can you determine how far back we have landed?' Akashiori struggled to regain control before more of Uzumaki's insanity escaped. He realized their body may have merged into the one of the past, but his psychological state remained unchanged from the future.

'_From what I can tell of our physical state and chakra level, I believe we are four days in the past.'_

'Only four days?' Akashiori's shoulders slumped in horror. 'Only four days…" He repeated in an angry whisper. 'It was nowhere near enough. Those fucking experiments!' He snarled with hate and desire for revenge. He wanted to burn the world and then find 'home.' Akashiori froze, dread filling his core; those weren't his thoughts! Another Naruto popped into his mindscape and barreled into him. One Uzumaki Naruto and one Akashiori fought each other with every skill they possessed, each trying to knock the other out of their mind. Both Narutos thought simultaneously that this must be the worst case of schizophrenia in the history of mankind.

Akashiori was losing.

Naruto's anguish and madness were stronger than Akashiori's cold desire for revenge. Their skills were equal, but Naruto's fighting style was more vicious than Akashiori's controlled form. Akashiori knew he was lost as the sky splintered even further. His rationality had been the only thing keeping his mindscape in stasis, but as he lost ground, the mind crumbled, giving Naruto more power to fight his restraints.

Akashiori disappeared with a loud crack. Not even Kyuubi's shouts could bring him back.

Uzumaki Naruto opened his eyes to reality and twisted his face into a gleeful, maniacal grin. Now he could unleash his madness upon the world so he could start his journey to finding 'home.' Once he found home, he could share ramen with Minato, Naruto thought too cheerfully. He gathered their spare chakra in his weakened body and mashed it together with his fury and anguish.

'_Kit, no!'_ Kyuubi shouted.

Naruto ignored the warnings and forcefully manifested a flaming violet tail with his anger as the main source of power. It felt so _good_!

'_Naruto, stop! I'm still trying to heal your body!'_

Naruto threw his head back as he had wished to do last time he was in this past, but instead of banging his head against the wall in frustration, he laughed hysterically. 'But Kyuu, dear friend, I'm using my madness instead of your chakra for most of the tail, so it should be fine, should it not? See? It's purple!"

He gathered angry heat onto his wrists and melted the vexing metal cuffs that had pinned him to the wall for two weeks of hell. "Finally, I'm free," he announced to himself, rubbing gingerly at the inflamed skin. "Hello, stupid door. You're in my way." He angrily punched the metal once, twice, three times until it blew off the hinges. Flexing his bruised hand, Naruto triumphantly stepped through the doorway in anticipation for the warm blood that would flow from his enemies' bodies.

Blood for blood.

He had already shed his blood for two weeks. Now it was their turn.

Naruto tore out the throats of the first two guards with his bare hands, blood splattering over his face and shredded rags. Two weeks of poison and imprisonment left his body weak, but as long as he could force himself to move, he could kill. Aiming for the throats was the easiest, and that was how the next four died. He swiped a short sword from a lifeless body and turned it over in his hand eagerly, looking forward to the next pitiful prey that stumbled his way. He didn't have any chakra for ninjutsu, but he had taijutsu and kenjutsu at his disposal.

He sneered.

Tearing them apart with his hands was much more fun anyway.

Naruto gutted the next swarm of guards with jerky motions; his body was still stiff and, but that would fix itself as his anger fueled Kyuubi's chakra into healing him. This was just the beginning. He could already taste the death in the air as he left mangled remains of corpses and pools of blood behind him. His face was frozen in an insane smile as he worked his way towards the surface. This was merely a sample of freedom – he was going to get the full deal soon.

Naruto roared as he ripped apart another wave of Rain shinobi. "Die! You bastards. You all asked for it, so die!" Picking up a bloody kunai, he rammed it into a forehead before pulling it out and slashed another shinobi's throat.

Then he staggered.

A flash of confusion crossed his mind. He was losing power and coordination. What was going on?

Pausing before another group attacked, he took stock of his body. Naruto growled. He was running out of chakra that kept him going, and his muscles already weakened by poison were tiring. Infuriated by his analysis, he tried to pull out more chakra but found nothing to grab.

'Kyuu! What is going on?' He snarled.

'_I am blocking you from accessing any more of my chakra.'_ Kyuubi answered just as angrily. _'Both of us need it to stay alive, but in your state you will drain us in one fell swoop. If you are going to fight, learn to conserve and attack efficiently, stupid brat! You will not receive any more chakra from me unless you do so.'_

Naruto roared his frustration but wrestled his tail back in to conserve energy as the fox demanded. If he planned to decimate the rest of this place, he needed power to do so. Naruto snorted as another bunch of sloppy guards charged at him. Whatever. These maggots weren't worthy of his chakra. His sword and bare hands could take out every single one of these pitifully weak rats that called themselves ninja.

Suddenly, he was smashed across the corridor into a stone wall. Snapping his head up to glare defiantly at the culprit, he felt a mad grin split his face. He shook with excitement as the biggest fish presented himself.

Hanzou.

"Hanzou!" He screamed. "I am going to carve out your sick face!"

Naruto was beyond caring about his own life now. There was no doubt he would lose against this man, but he was determined to get in at least one hit for one last bit of satisfaction in his life. Naruto stopped and frowned for a moment. His mind told him he had one regret. What was it?

His only regret was that…he would never have another chance to tug on Minato's hair. Naruto pushed the thought aside.

Despite his insanity and failing coordination, Naruto moved fluidly through his familiar kenjutsu-taijutsu style. He had decided to injure the Amegakure leader so he was going to do it. He may not have said these words aloud, but it was still a promise, and he never went back on his word. Even in madness this was his nindo, and he was going to follow through without fail.

While Naruto could only fight physically, Hanzou attacked with both taijutsu and ninjutsu. The long-range ninjutsu attacks made it difficult to close in on the man, but he would make sure his taijutsu-kenjutsu was enough.

Ducking under a powerful punch, Naruto finally found an opening and dug his sword in the man's inner thigh to slice deep into the flesh. He would have cut down to the bone if a chakra enhanced fist hadn't shattered his shoulder. Regardless, he felt unparalleled delight in watching the large man stumble. Ignoring the mind-numbing pain from his injuries, Naruto dove to aim for a critical point on his stomach but was deflected by a ball of fire released from Hanzou's large hands. The blonde screamed as flame ate his side but pressed forward again for what he knew was going to be his last attack.

_He had to make it count. _

As the man's uninjured leg whipped around to dig into Naruto's still-burning side, he smirked wickedly. Sacrificing the last of himself for _one final hit_ was worth the price, he thought. He crushed the instinct to jumping away from the impending, fatal attack and, instead, skimmed fingers over multiple tenketsu points from Hanzou's inner thigh, up the hip, and across the pelvis, releasing pulses of compressed chakra with each touch. Moments later, he was slammed into another wall. He fought to keep his eyes open to see the aftermath of his attack even as his blood-drenched, broken body dropped down to the ground. With all his remaining strength, he kept himself sitting upright against the rough wall to watch the anticipated show.

Hanzou's hip and leg gave out.

Naruto threw his head back and howled in laughter. "Take that, fucker! You'll never get those tenketsu points back. I burnt them all closed with chakra! You're ruined!" Who cared if that was an exaggeration? He certainly didn't. Because of his own injuries and limited time, his work had been sloppy. Hanzou would regain use of at least half of those tenketsu points, but the other half had been permanently closed.

It was enough.

It was better than enough!

His heavy eyelids began to slide shut. He basked in the ecstasy of extreme satisfaction even as he felt himself slip away with every minute he sat there. He heard fighting and shouts of men in the background but did nothing to avoid any further attacks on his person. This cold prison floor in Amegakure among the sea of blood and Ame-nin corpses would be Uzumaki Naruto's death bed. He didn't even bother to open his eyes as he happily waited for the killing blow which was surely closing in.

"Naruto!"

The blonde whipped his head around to stare incredulously at the owner of the voice, then winced at the jolt of pain which flared in his neck.

Minato…

Insane laughter escaped again as he realized how damaged his mind and body were. He couldn't move and was hallucinating his brains out.

"Naruto!" The apparition called out as it ran to him frantically, reaching out with a hand coated with green healing chakra. Why was he still dreaming about being healed?

Naruto's eyes widened as the pain in his charred side faded bit by bit. "Wha…? Minato?" He couldn't be real… This was an image his broken mind created for the last few seconds of his life…wasn't it?

A mad giggle bubbled up. "Just what I wished for…" Naruto raised a heavy hand to tug gently on the apparition's hair…but his hand didn't pass through the image. He felt the soft strands and saw blood from his thumb and index finger smear onto the gold. He was real. He was here. Minato was here!

The sight of the man filled him with warmth. Or was that the healing chakra? Maybe both?

Naruto would have brushed his fingers gently across the frowning face, but a small, tranquil part of his mind stilled the hand to keep from staining that beautiful skin with his dirty fingers.

"Minato…" Naruto breathed out. "Minato," he repeated the name like a sweet prayer. It was the only thing he could think of…

Then a wave of insanity rushed through him. He grinned widely. "Minato? Will you promise to eat ramen with me and Tobi in hell?" But instantly, another thought followed, causing Naruto's shoulders to slump and expression to drop into that of despair. "No, that can't happen, can it? Me and Tobi are going to hell, but you – you'll go to heaven. I'm sure of it." He sniffled.

Minato looked into Naruto's wild eyes in confusion. "Naruto…? Are you alright?"

The sniffling continued as Naruto snickered. "That question again. You ask it too much. All the time. But it's nice. I love it. My answer is 'noooope, I'm not alright,'" he began cackling. "I've lost my mind. My sanity is gone. My mind is in shambles. I don't think I can be fixed this time. This time my home is going to be that pretty insane asylum. Home…" He continued to laugh even as tears spilled down his cheeks. "Minato, I've finally passed the point of no return…"

"Oh, Naruto…" sorrow filled Minato's eyes. "Not yet. You haven't crossed that line yet. I'll fix you. I'll fix you, okay?" He reached out a hand to hold the smaller blonde's cheek as he continued to heal the many wounds that weren't healing on their own. He could barely locate the wounds beneath the thick layer of red.

Naruto jerked away. "No! You can't touch me. You'll be tainted. The blood and the…" Naruto trailed off in humiliation. "Just don't touch!"

Ignoring his pleas, the hand settled carefully on a bloodied cheek. "I'll fix you."

Reflexively, Naruto relaxed at the touch and couldn't help but lean into the warmth.

Safe.

He was safe in Minato's hands.

He felt warm all over and his body didn't really hurt anymore.

He gave into an urge and turned his face into the protective palm to press a light kiss on the warm, warm skin.

Safe.

Naruto smiled up softly.

Safe and warm.

Suddenly he tensed. Footsteps closed in on them. More than one person – three people. He hoisted himself up with strength he didn't know he possessed and slipped around to block Minato from danger. He snarled at the approaching men and dropped into his taijutsu form. They weren't going to get through to this precious person as long as he lived. He would take every one of them out before they could touch a single golden hair.

He leapt at the attackers, but before he could take one full step, something snaked its arms around his chest. He flinched violently and was about to twist around to rip its throat out but froze when its low, soothing voice washed over him.

"Naruto, don't attack. They're on our side. They're friends."

There was a moment of skeptical silence. Minato.

As if strings of a puppet were cut, his muscles gave out and would have crashed to the ground if he hadn't been supported from behind.

"Captain, what happened here? It's like…a massacre," one of the men exclaimed. "Don't tell me Uzuhara did all this."

Minato nodded.

"Damn…" Someone else whispered his disbelief. "And they're all dead?"

Naruto's head snapped up at the last word. "Hanzou! Where's that bastard?"

They all looked at him in confusion.

"Where. Is. Hanzou!" Naruto punctuated each word with an attempt to escape. "He was right there."

"He wasn't here when I arrived… S-So you fought him…" Minato shakily pulled Naruto's form flush against his own and buried his face into the smaller blonde's hair at the thought that the struggling bundle in his arms could have been killed moments before he had reached him.

Naruto stopped struggling and laughed darkly. "I got the sicko. I got his tenketsu points. And don't forget that thigh!" As he remembered the last incident four days in the future which he barely escaped in time, tears trickled down his cheeks again, washing down the blood in its path to expose trails of grimy skin under his glazed eyes.

The four members of Team 9 flinched as he barked out a splitting laugh which was soon replaced by shallow coughs.

"Damn you Hanzou. I swear I'm going to kill the bastard early," Naruto promised in a hoarse whisper. "I've already done half the job. Next time, his ass is mine…"

Possessive arms squeezed tighter. "It's okay, Naruto. Let's leave that for another day. We're getting out of here first."

"Out of here…" Naruto's breath hitched. He grabbed Minato's arms firmly and cranked his head around for a glimpse of the man holding him. "Minato! Will you take me to 'home'?" He asked full of hope. He felt a fragment of his mind settle back in its rightful place. "I want to go home," his voice dropped in volume with every word. "Can we go home…?"

Naruto relaxed as he felt Minato press his warm cheek against his own bloody one in agreement and whisper reassuringly, "Of course I'll take you home," and everything faded away.

* * *

**A/N:** …was that enough of a kiss, my dear readers? :P Naruto is much more honest with his feelings when he's insane, isn't he? Was it too dark and psychotic?

And I'm sorrrryyy, not much of Minato saving the day.

I think this is Naruto's rock bottom. He can only go up from here :)

Do you like Minato's teammates' masks? These are the four cats which fall within the Panthera genus. Cats and stealth and tracking make sense, right? I wonder how they distinguish the masks since leopards, jaguars, and cheetahs are all cats with spots, but let's just pretend they can. I also wonder how they'd design Lion's mask with its mane.

Next chapter: Something lighter for Naruto. Enter Sakumo.

_June 04, 2012_


	10. Embarrassment

**A/N:** Yay! Finally a new chapter. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your support! This story is alive because of my readers and reviewers. This chapter is long…at least for me (almost 10k words). O_O Do you like shorter or longer chapters?

Am I the only one who is a bit irritated by the major layout changes on FFn?

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Chapter 10: Embarrassment**

When Naruto pried his eyes open, he saw.

He saw a span of brown beneath his eyes which focused into sharp edges, then shaped into jagged rocks.

Then, Naruto felt.

He felt those jagged rocks under his cheek, under his chest, under his arms, under his legs, his flesh throbbing where they jabbed.

Suddenly, he was.

He hurt all over. His body, his mind, his heart. It hurt, like he had been crushed, and the impossible weight was still grinding down on his entire being. It overwhelmed him.

Little by little, millimeter by millimeter, he shifted onto his side. It must have taken forever to finally see more than just out of the corner of his eyes. With one final twitch, his body flumped over onto its back, and he moaned as he became the definition of pain. He didn't realize he was crying between closed lids until numbness set in after another long, long forever. The ache made it so hard to think.

Naruto forced his eyes open once more. He could now see, if barely, that he was at the bottom of some deep, dark chasm. The smell of smoke faintly touched his nose but too subtle to be real.

Where was he?

Better yet, _who _was he?

Right then, he merely existed, a blank person, alive and detached. Regardless of the physical discomforts, his wooly mind was comfortable drifting and leisurely taking in the minimal surroundings. It was…therapeutic. It was all about the senses – the sights, the sounds, the smells, the textures, the tastes. He absorbed his surroundings to fill his identity.

But no mind is ever satisfied by merely absorbing information. It wanted to think and analyze and reorganize. _It was curious._

Soon, Naruto's mind bored with the outside and turned inwards, only to find the state of wooliness saturating everything. He barely picked out his name, his origins, how he'd grown up, how he'd ended up in the past – all the basic facts ingrained deep within him. He knew enough to be content with himself, but the human mind always wanted more. It wanted its unasked questions answered.

How did he get here, wherever this was?

That was when he stumbled into fog. The answers just weren't there. He knew they had existed, but it was like a forgotten dream, always just out of reach, taunting him with the knowledge that he had once known and showing him a ghost of a memory before snatching it away again. It was a fight with an invisible jokester – one that no one could ever hope to win against.

But he wanted to know. He fought for every little piece of himself, wrestling them away from those greedy hands. Each faint sliver brought answers but with it, more curiosity. When he'd dug up enough pieces for a simple outline of what happened, a chill went down his spine.

Rain. Hanzou. Blood. Minato.

He lost sight of his identity again. Was he Uzumaki Naruto? What happened to Akashiori? Had he truly lost his sanity? He _felt_ sane… He rolled his eyes. Any insane person would consider himself sane. He would just label himself as 'perfectly sane' for the time being.

That left the question of where he was and why. The questions of how had he come to lie at the bottom of a deep, deep trench and why he was alone ran circles in his lethargic head, but none of the memories he recovered gave him any clue to his current situation, nor did he receive any hints on how to get out. A giggle escaped.

Naruto groaned.

He _hated_ giggling. He _never_ giggled. The fact that he had just giggled meant he wasn't 'perfectly sane.'

He gave up thinking and took the obvious approach by looking up to the grey sky which seemed farther away than he had ever seen it. He took a couple deep breaths and propped himself up onto his elbows, then clenched his trembling stomach muscles to struggle to sit up. With success, Naruto raised his eyes from his knees to look ahead. He moaned softly, shoulders sagging at the dark, jagged path which continued with no end and the crack in the ground to his right which dropped even farther downwards. He didn't know whether to thank the heavens for landing him in the only flat surface amongst the miles of cliffs or to curse them for giving him no way up except to climb that sheer cliff with his bare hands.

A puff to his side made him flinch.

'Naru-chan, so this is where you were,' a soft touch rubbed at a cheek.

'Shiro?'

'You had everyone worried. We couldn't sense you anywhere.'

'Where am I?' He giggled again and cringed.

'You've fallen into the crack in your mindscape,' a hand gently landed on his shoulder. 'Let's get you out of here.' He was scooped up into strong arms and engulfed by a puff of cloud.

When the cloud dissipated, he was placed gingerly onto the ground to sit back into Shiro's larger form which leaned onto thick red fur.

'_Kit, I'm angry with you,'_ a low rumble behind them caused subtle vibrations to run through his exhausted body. _'Look around you.'_

His dreary, grey mindscape was half in ashes and shattered while the other half was wilting. The rift in the ground where he had fallen was split even wider, and a half crumbled waterfall had become a weary flow of innocuous memories. There was barely any surface undamaged, except the very beginnings of a pre-sunrise glow and, curiously, the untidy purple lilacs which had spread a just little more.

'Kyuu, did I really do that?' He wailed in despair.

'_This is not as terrible as several hours ago, while you were rampaging. At that time, much of this was an inferno of your wish to tear everything but your 'home' apart.'_

'It was perfectly justified, dear foxy. They were in the way of 'home.'' Naruto scoffed in a sudden change of mood. He rubbed his nose, itchy from the smoky, dusty air, then let out a mad giggle. 'Why am I okay now?'

Kyuubi swatted him with a tail. _'You are nowhere near 'okay,' but your small victory against Hanzou, as well as Namikaze's presence, were able to calm your fire. You were able to bury much of your memories underground,'_ he paused,_ 'but__ I fear their return.'_

'Ohhhh, so I'm still messed up…' Naruto snickered at his own plight as he leaned his head back onto Shiro's chest and nervously fiddled with the man's fingers. The ache within his body had subsided with his close proximity to both demon foxes, leaving only his wooly mind as a distraction from their conversation.

'What'll happen if I go outside?' He asked and sneezed. A fragment of the sky fell just as another piece put itself back in place.

'_It is best if you remain here for now. Without our protection, you will lose yourself again when outside factors trigger offensive memories. However, bring back Akashiori; he will be able to handle the outside.'_

'He'll be furious, won't he…?' Naruto rubbed his face with his palms as he formed the Hunter-nin's image in his mindscape. Akashiori popped into existence with a piercing look shooting straight at Naruto. He stormed over and slammed a fist onto Naruto's head with almost as much strength as Tsunade-babaa and Sakura's.

'You great idiot! Look what you did to our mind,' he raged and gestured furiously. 'This is going to take _ages_ to fix. I don't know how we're going to close that ridiculous trench. We're going to trip over it every time we visit Kyuubi! It's also going to take forever to regrow the grass. We might have previously had weeds, but do you know how much mental fertilizer went into making it so lush? Of course you do. You're me!'

'You wanted revenge too…' Naruto replied meekly, wringing both his and Shiro's hands.

'Cold revenge! 'Revenge is a dish best served cold.' Have you not heard of that before? Of course you have. You're me!' He threw his hands up into the air.

'But I got us out! You would have just hung on that stupid wall and waited for another round of experimentation while planning and plotting for nothing,' Naruto rebuked.

Akashiori pressed his arms firmly to his sides to keep them from bashing Naruto's head once more.

'You can't deny that, can you,' Naruto stuck out his tongue in smug triumph.

'At least I wouldn't have broken us or gotten us almost killed by Hanzou, idiot! And do you remember what happened with Minato? What a disgrace…'

A vivid image of Hanzou's finger on his neck appeared for an instant before being wiped away hastily by one of Kyuubi's tails. 'Hey! Not fair! I want to see it too!' Naruto waved his arms in an attempt to retrieve the image, almost hitting Shiro in the face.

'_You know you are not ready,'_ the giant fox reprimanded.

'But stupid Akashiori got to see it, and he was the bastard that messed up everything.'

'Naru-chan, be nice,' Shiro interrupted. 'You are equally at fault, so don't put all the blame on Shio-chan. He saved you back there, too.'

Naruto snapped his jaw and growled but looked down in reluctant repentance, knowing Shiro was right.

Akashiori turned his back to them with a sigh. 'I must head out. We first need to fix things outside,' he said, beginning to fade out.

'Aka…!' Naruto called after him with overflowing tears. 'I'm sorry…'

The Hunter-nin waved a careless hand of forgiveness before disappearing altogether.

'Good boy,' Shiro nuzzled Naruto's hair in approval as the blonde giggled insanely in appreciation, thinking maybe the giggling was pretty attracti–

NO. Stop that thought right there.

* * *

The second time Naruto woke, this time as Akashiori, he cursed at the ache in his physical body. He tightened his arm around what he was holding and buried his face into it to distract himself from the pain.

"Naruto?"

Akashiori flinched. "Minato." So, that was what/who he was holding on to: Minato's neck.

"How are you feeling?" The ANBU Captain asked, tightening his arms around the Hunter-nin's legs.

The smaller blonde was being carried on Minato's back as he sprinted over branches of a forest. Despite the discomfort he was feeling, his front was warm against the strong back. He pressed his face into the fabric of the ANBU uniform covering Minato's neck.

"I am in pain," he answered simply.

The arms hooked under his legs tightened even more. "Where does it hurt, Naruto?"

"Everywhere, and my brain… I-it's best if you don't use Naruto's name right now,' he informed the man. 'He is not yet ready to come out."

Team 9 shot him bewildered looks from under their masks at the comment, but their leader understood the warning.

"What should we call you?"

"Call me Aka."

He felt Minato nod next to his own head, but his teammate was not so tactful.

"Why–"

The man was cut off by a sharp jerk of his Captain's masked chin. Akashiori held back a sigh of relief at the intervention until Kyuubi spoke up.

'_Kit, this may be a good opportunity to test how the ANBU may react to your occupation as a Hunter-nin. You need to prepare for the possibility of exposure.'_

Akashiori tensed. 'No! They just accepted me into their ranks. I live with them! What if they turn against me?'

'_These are Namikaze's teammates. He is a good judge of character. They must hold some respectable qualities for him to trust them.'_

'What if I cause a rift within the team…?'

'_That is their problem,'_ Kyuubi answered callously.

'Kyuubi!'

'_Just do it.'_

Akashiori sent over a mental blast of irritated wind but complied, seeing the logic while wishing it wasn't so.

"What if I told you it is because of my occupation?" He addressed the man coolly.

Minato tensed_. "What are you playing at?"_ he hissed in a whisper.

"I am conducting a test," Akashiori whispered a nonchalant reply.

All four teammates glanced over with curiosity reflecting in their eyes.

"What do you mean by your occupation?"

"Just as I said. Aka is from my occupation. It is my codename."

"But ANBU have anim–"

"You are Hunter-nin," another man interrupted with a statement rather than a question.

"That's right, ANBU-san," Akashiori smirked. "I am of the Hunter-nin Corps."

"What?" The first man exclaimed. "But you live with us in ANBU Headquarters."

"It was an order from Sandaime-sama."

"You've been lying to us the entire time, _Hunter_!" The man accused, emphasizing the title as an insult.

"I never lied. I only confirmed I am a part of Black Ops, which is the truth," he said as doubt and disappointment began to fill him.

"But you've been pretending to be ANBU."

"Not at all. I have taken Hunter-nin missions during my stay, and I never initiated contact with ANBU shinobi at Headquarters."

"What about Captain? You've been deceiving him."

"I knew, Tiger," Minato cut in, to Akashiori's surprise. "I knew from the beginning."

Tiger stumbled on a branch before righting himself. "…but Captain, he's Hunter-nin. You know what they're like."

"Pray tell, what are we like, ANBU-san?" He asked in a hard voice.

"You guys are heartless monsters that kill mercilessly," the ANBU-nin spat out disdainfully.

Akashiori flinched unexpectedly after so long of not being called that term. "Oh? We are monsters that kill without mercy, are we? But we are merely carrying out our mission just as how ANBU kill on their missions."

"We aren't monsters like you," Akashiori flinched once more as Tiger continued. "You guys slaughter your mission targets!"

'Kyuubi, you were wrong about them. ANBU will always be ANBU.'

"Hmph, as I expected from ANBU," the Hunter-nin muttered aloud to them, satisfied that he had been proven right but disappointed by the derisive reaction. "Minato, please let me down."

"Aka…" he reluctantly slowed on a branch. The smaller blonde climbed off with difficulty, swaying on his tired legs before straightening his back proudly.

"Minato, what is our current position?" He asked, impassive.

"…around eighty miles west and twenty degrees south of Konoha. Why are you asking? You aren't going to…"

"I apologize for the inconvenience I have caused you and your team," Akashiori said flatly. "I have a final mission to carry out nearby before returning to the village. I will make the remaining trip alone. Thank you for the trouble you have gone through to retrieve me from captivity."

Without another word, the Hunter-nin zipped ahead in a blur and disappeared into the trees.

No one spoke for several moments, watching the direction Akashiori had left.

"Tiger, you are an imbecile," Jaguar growled softly.

"What, it's the truth," Tiger defended. "You saw what he did to those Rain-nin."

"Would you not have done the same to escape? To escape two weeks of torture? You saw his injuries," the normally stoic man raised his voice. "If your enemies were attacking you, would you not have done the same? Especially when consumed by fury against those responsible for your hell?" Jaguar paused for effect. "**I would**."

Tiger opened his mouth to argue another point but was cut off by his Captain.

"Tiger! Discuss this later," Cheetah commanded firmly. "We need to get him back. He's still injured," He took off without waiting for the rest of his team.

Throwing his teammate a scornful glare, Jaguar followed silently, after which Lion and Leopard exchanged an awkward glance and also ran after them, leaving Tiger with his ANBU self-righteousness in the empty forest.

As Minato blurred past another tree, he cursed his teammate for his narrow-mindedness and cursed Naruto for exposing his affiliation. Then he cursed himself for allowing the argument happen. He didn't know what had prompted the Hunter-nin to give himself away when he had previously expressed his adamant refusal to do so.

'It was a test,' his mind supplied. 'It was a test to see how much danger he would face if he was found out. And he was right about us…'

He knew it was true. They were a bunch of prejudiced hypocrites who jumped to conclusions without looking into just who these Hunter-nin were. They had been at this for decades, and although the Hunter-nin had never once retaliated, the ANBU still kept going. In hindsight, they had been childish, for decades! He was shamed by himself and on behalf his fellow shinobi; they were supposed to be elite ninja of Konohagakure, but they couldn't get over a petty little quarrel that they had started without reason. How stupid.

Minato followed Naruto's trail swiftly, worry increasing as the trail became more and more obvious. With his skills, sloppy meant he was losing control of himself, in this case, because of his injuries. When he saw an obvious mark of the Hunter-nin's foot slipping during a landing on a tree branch, he sped up in hopes of catching up with him before he fell to his death.

Up ahead, he noticed a figure sitting on a branch and sagged against the tree trunk.

"Naruto!"

The smaller blonde's head dropped forward, but he visibly struggled to look up.

"I told you not to call me that. If he comes out, we'll fall apart," he slurred, losing his usual formal manner of speech. "Fuck, my stupid head. I am finally physically healed, but I can't even stand long enough to climb down this tree."

Minato landed on the same branch and squatted down to look into Aka's dilated blue eyes.

"Aka, please, we need to get you back to Konoha. Didn't you want to go home?"

Akashiori snorted weakly. "That was Naruto's insanity. Do not confuse me with him. I'm out here so we can figure out how to put enough of him back together to allow him out. Right now, he's barely functioning properly in mindscape and only because we've repressed our memories."

"That bad?" Minato looked at him in shock. "I'm taking you back now."

Akashiori sighed in defeat. "Very well, let's get going," he made to stand and barely managed, leaning all his weight against the tree. He grit his teeth and jumped but immediately lost his footing, plummeting to the ground. Minato dove right after him without thought, completely focused on catching the Hunter-nin before he smashed into the ground with what he could imagine to be a sickening crunch.

The ANBU Captain caught up halfway down and flipped them over so he was on the bottom. He saw Aka's eyes widen in surprise at the unexpected appearance as Minato applied as much chakra as he could on his back to cushion the blow.

Thud.

Minato groaned at the impact and the Hunter-nin's considerable weight settling heavily on top of him, but even as he struggled to breathe, he didn't let go of the smaller body.

"Minato! I-I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!" Naruto chanted. "I'm sorry. Are you alright? I'm sorry." Minato could see tears forming in his friend's still-dilated eyes.

"I'm fine. Don't worry," he whispered words of reassurance and tightened his arms.

"Minato," Naruto sniffled, "I'm sorry," he said for the last time and pressed his face into Minato's neck.

"I'm fine. I cushioned my back with chakra. Naruto, _I'm fine._"

Naruto stiffened, then began to tremble. "Minato, d-don't call me that. Some of him has already slipped out, and more is… Hurry, say my Hunter-nin name. Quickly!"

Minato needed no further prompting. "Aka, Aka. You are Aka. Hunter-nin of Konoha. Aka," he loosened his arms, using one hand to remove his mask and the other to lift the other blonde's head off his shoulder to press their foreheads firmly together.

"Aka, look into my eyes. That's right. Don't look away. I'm talking to Aka. I believe you're Aka. Can't you see? Believe me," he combed his fingers through Akashiori's hair.

After minutes of scattered assurances of Akashiori's identity, the trembling subsided slowly. Still, the man on top continued to assess Minato's unwavering gaze for any sign of doubt.

He nodded slowly, accidentally bumping noses before whispering solidly despite his glazed eyes, "I am Aka, Hunter-nin of Konoha…" Akashiori smiled absently and rubbed noses again, intentionally this time. "Thank you," he raised a shaky hand to brush an eartail, but before the hand reached its intended target, his head lolled back down onto the ANBU Captain's shoulder.

"Aka? Hey, Aka?"

Getting no response, Minato realized he had passed out from exhaustion. He looked helplessly to his four teammates watching from the side. 'What do I do now?' he mouthed to them.

Jaguar gave a sigh and a slight smile. "Let's get him home, Captain."

* * *

When Naruto woke a third time, again as Akashiori, he palmed his face.

_Kami, how shameful!_

With no little mortification, he remembered what he had done before falling unconscious. He had nuzzled Minato's neck and rubbed noses.

#$&%!

He rubbed angrily at his nose as if to scrub away the incident.

First the hair tugging, the hug, kissing Minato's hand, and finally rubbing noses. It was all stupid Naruto's fault! Akashiori hadn't been this embarrassed since…he couldn't remember… Whether it was because he, Akashiori, had never before humiliated himself or because of the suppressed memories, he didn't know, but that didn't change the fact that he had done those embarrassing _things_.

"Nar…Aka?"

The Hunter-nin flushed as the receiving end of those embarrassing _things_ reached out a hand to brush hair away from the smaller blonde's eyes. Was there no end to his embarrassment?

Ugh, he hated that word.

"You're awake," Minato exclaimed with relief coloring his voice. "But you look a bit red," the hand settled on his forehead. "Maybe we should take your temperature."

He flushed an even deeper shade even as he flinched from the touch, but he couldn't help thinking the hand felt so nice and warm…how infuriatingly Uzumaki Naruto-like.

"I'm going to get a nurse," Minato rose but stopped when a hand grabbed his retreating hand.

"I'm fine. Merely…uh…embarrassed to have passed out on you," Akashiori lied, snatching his hand back and blushed a bit more.

Minato turned back around and looked at him uncertainly. "If you're sure," the hand returned to his forehead, then shifted to his cheek and back to his forehead again. "I guess you don't feel feverish."

The smaller blonde sighed happily at the pleasant touch, then snapped his eyes wide open. The mortification returned. If Minato's hand hadn't been in its (pleasant) position, he would have turned on his stomach and smothered his face with his pillow. _How was this man doing this…whatever 'this' was?_

Speaking of pillow, where was he?

"Minato," he rasped through the dry throat he hadn't noticed in his _preoccupation_, "Where am I?" The corners of Akashiori's lips twitched downwards when the hand was pulled away.

"You're at the ANBU infirmary in Headquarters," Minato answered as he sat back down in the chair next to the bed. "You've been asleep for two weeks."

"Two weeks?" The Hunter-nin relaxed as his fist was pried away from where it had suddenly clenched the bed sheets and cradled gently in Minato's larger hands. At the same time, he wanted to bang his head on a wall but, instead, continued the conversation. "Has anything happened along the borders during that time?"

Minato frowned at the sudden shift to a serious topic. "Well, there have been an increase in merchants passing over Fire Country borders, and the frequency of skirmishes has decreased slightly."

Akashiori nodded. "Good, good. Is there any news on relations between Grass and Earth Country?"

"No, we haven't heard anything," Minato narrowed his eyes as Akashiori's forehead wrinkled slightly. "Were you responsible for those?"

"I might have been," the Hunter-nin smirked, mood improving drastically. "I can tell you're not pleased with talk about work right now, so we shall discuss something else. What has been happening with you?"

As Minato gladly shared his two weeks, Akashiori let the soothing voice wash over him and calloused fingers, which were now gently kneading his palm, ease his thoughts of the war. This time, he swallowed the shame to just enjoy the sensations. He could feel Naruto in their mindscape relaxing as well and whisper 'home.' Another handful of fallen sky fragments piece themselves together before floating up to fit into the sky which had survived their breakdown. This time, no new fragments fell.

As the conversation lulled, Akashiori squashed his pride and made a request.

"Minato," he began uneasily and averted his eyes, "Would it be possible for you to spend some time with us each day you are off duty until Naruto has recovered to functional capacity? Your presence seems to…have a positive effect."

Minato grinned and ruffled Aka's hair at the request. "Of course. I did promise that I'd fix you…him."

That led Akashiori to consider an intriguing idea. "It may speed the recovery if you spoke with him directly. Otherwise, it will take months if not several years."

"How? Didn't you say he can't come out?"

"I may– it may be possible to pull you into our mindscape."

'Kyuubi, can it be done?'

'_Possibly,'_ the fox answered. _'It may work because of the blood you share.'_

Both Akashiori and Naruto winced at the word 'blood.' It brought up malicious images which came too close to reaching the surfaced, and it also reminded them that Minato and they were related.

'Oooo, do I get to pull him in?' Naruto gushed in their mindscape.

'No, _I_ will be the one to take care of that. Until then, reflect upon the possible consequences of control loss,' Akashiori shot him down. 'Kyuubi, prepare to hide.'

"Minato, hold my hand tightly and look into my eyes. I cannot guarantee success."

Staring into Minato's intense eyes, Akashiori reached out his chakra through their connected hands to cocoon the other blonde. He found Minato's own chakra source and invited it towards him, directing it into his mind. The chakra was warm, soothing, and strong like the person himself and made both Akashiori and Naruto sigh and smile.

Minato also smiled as he felt the Hunter-nin's mind relax at his chakra's touch, pleased that he could bring out such a reaction. His chakra followed the beckoning chakra, wild as usual, but met some sort of barrier. It was like soft clay, not really blocking him from sinking into the dense material but making it difficult to find any foothold. Relief filled him as he felt Aka's chakra return to him to guide him through.

Suddenly, he was on the other side. He had a body – his body – which stood in a dilapidated hall. Was his Naruto's current mind? Concern shot through him as he noticed more signs of damage and violence.

'Don't worry Miiiiinato-saaan,' said a cheerful voice behind him. 'This ain't Naruto's head anymore. It's only his past.'

Minato whirled around and saw a much younger version of Naruto wearing a muddy, orange jumpsuit. 'This is Naruto's past?' He asked with growing horror.

'Yup yup, 't was our apartment til half a year ago,' the boy gave a blinding smile which looked terribly out of place under the flickering light. 'We finally saved enough money to buy a bit of land and build our own house! The Hunter-nin missions helped a bunch.'

'H-how long did you live here?' Minato ignored Aka's chakra trying to tug him out of the apartment.

'Hmmm, I don' wanna count so you can do that part. From when we were five,' the smile stayed strong.

'Around twelve years? Did you live alone?'

Little Naruto's smile slipped for an instant before returning even brighter. He pumped his arms enthusiastically and answered, 'Yup, cool right? We got to do whatever we wanted. No bedtime like all the other kids complained about, an' nobody got mad at us for being messy!'

Immediately following the comment, the creaking floorboards were littered with empty cups of instant ramen and pieces of plaster.

'Why is the place so…damaged?' He ignored another tug, stronger than the last.

'Psh, that's not our fault!' Little Naruto defended, crossing his arms over his chest. The smile now looked strained. 'It was the…it was the villagers. They always broke in and broke our stuff. An' even worse, they smashed our ramen!'

'Naruto, stop blabbing!' A deeper voice snapped behind them.

'I'm just tellin' the truth!' Little Naruto retorted.

'That is referred to as 'blabbing.' Did we not agree to tell no one about this?'

'But this is Minato-san! I think it's okay if we tell him. _He's on our side_,' Little Naruto emphasized the last point by pressing his hand to his chest as if to claim the ANBU-nin's friendship. 'And why are you even here, Aka-baka? This is _my_ space.'

'Ugh, nevermind. Minato, follow me.'

The oldest of the three blondes remained frozen with a dropped jaw and wide eyes still sweeping across his surroundings, shocked at how Konoha could deliberately cause a child to live like this. A firm grasp on his arm broke him out of his trance as it forcefully dragged him away from the boy who had another smile pasted on his face.

'At least I didn't lose or break my own home, stupidhead!' Little Naruto shouted after them.

'Don't listen to him,' Aka huffed. 'I used to be a hopeless idiot.'

'You're still a hopeless idiot!' The childish voice shouted again.

'No I am not,' Aka returned, yanking open the door angrily and pulled them through.

As they stepped through the doorway, Minato entered a space just as depressing, if not more, as the one he had just walked out of, but in a different way. It was destruction of the very foundation of the mind. He recognized signs of the beauty Yamanaka Inokazu had described, but only because he had been told of the true beauty which had once existed in this aftermath of what looked like multiple natural disasters.

Then he saw a quick glance of Naruto sitting with Shiro before he fizzed out of the mindscape.

When he came to, the first thing that entered his vision was a scowling Naruto – no, Aka.

"Well, it worked for a moment," the Hunter-nin mumbled to himself. Pursing his lips, he focused on Minato. "I apologize for failing. I doubt we can try again today, though. It took quite a toll on Naruto. I believe the length of your stay depends on how strong he is, therefore we will have to build up his stamina."

Minato nodded his agreement with a frown he couldn't hide.

"Could you tell me more about your childhood?" He asked apprehensively, wanting to know more about Naruto, as well as his first glimpse of the darkness which resided within his beloved village.

The scowl returned to Akashiori's face. "That blabbing brat," he muttered, annoyed. Then he looked up apologetically. "I-I…well…perhaps someday, but certainly not now. Neither of us is mentally or emotionally strong enough to handle it. Make the request once we have been fixed some more, and once Naruto becomes less of a lunatic," he answered. "Your presence in our mindscape, no matter how short, helped quite a bit. In just ten seconds, you probably fixed around one percent."

Smiling gratefully, Akashiori raised his arms above his head to stretch his spine, but his expression dropped at his next question.

"Do you know when I am to be discharged?"

When Minato shook his head, the Hunter-nin shot the opposite wall a glare which could burn and grumbled unintelligibly.

* * *

It was a week later that Akashiori was finally discharged. Sandaime-Jijii had originally wanted to keep him in the infirmary for another week until he discovered the rebellious blonde had been secretly training in his private room. Sarutobi had already received complaints from medic-nin about death threats, damaged equipment, and escape attempts, and finally he decided it just wasn't worth the effort.

Akashiori grinned triumphantly as he sauntered out of the room to Minato who was waiting outside with a bemused smile.

Glancing dubiously at the irritated Hokage taking a deep drag from his pipe, Minato leaned down to whisper, "You look very proud of yourself. I heard you've been a terror whenever I wasn't here."

"Of course, it's always satisfying to annoy Sandaime-Jijii."

"You still call him so informally even when you're Aka?"

Akashiori grimaced. "It's been too deeply ingrained for me to overwrite."

Minato slung an arm over Aka's shoulders, noting the slight flinch he still suffered at unexpected touch.

"Someday, you're going to push him too far, and he's going to hand you an outrageous punishment," he chuckled.

"He already has, multiple times," Aka answered wryly. "Once he made Naruto scrub the entire Hokage Mountain."

Minato laughed aloud and ruffled Aka's hair, wishing he had seen it happen. He wondered again, as he had many times over the months he had known Uzuhara Naruto, when such an event had occurred and why no one knew about it. He'd noticed that many of Naruto's past didn't seem to fit what he knew of Konoha's past, such as the deaths of many shinobi. There hadn't been any great losses of ninja over the last several years since the Second Shinobi World War ended, but Naruto's grief was genuine.

Seeing Aka with a rare, carefree grin, he brushed the thought aside for now.

* * *

A month later, Akashiori and Naruto were proud to say they were twenty percent healed. A fifth of the way there. And most of it was thanks to Minato who spent much of his free time with them, whether it was by studying new jutsu together, training, taking meals, or just talking lazily in the ANBU Captain's room.

Naruto had never been this comfortable with anyone before – not even Sasuke. There was a deep stab of guilt whenever he thought of the Past and how he was becoming increasingly accustomed to this Konoha. It felt like he was throwing away his precious people and dreams for a cheap, meager replacement. Aside from Minato, Sandaime-Jijii, and his pledge, there was nothing he could or wanted to claim, and even Minato and the Sandaime were on shaky grounds.

He knew he was just going to hurt in the end.

But he couldn't get out of interacting with them either. His sanity and Konoha's peace were dependent on him, and therefore he couldn't let his own problems get in the way. There was also a part of him that desperately wanted to get close to them. The dilemma often dredged up the urge to cry, and he only let himself do so in the Forest of Death after Minato had gone to sleep.

As another month passed, his recovery slowed. They gave up on the ridiculous trench for now and moved into the stage of fixing details which both Akashiori and Naruto were terrified to venture into. The only reason they could walk around town without breaking down was because their memories had been suppressed. Each time a memory returned to the surface, they braced themselves for the possibility of triggering further insanity.

To his further annoyance, his work as Haikage was progressing slowly as well. The Sandaime wouldn't let him out of the village 'for his health' so he could only work through his informants. He was impatient, dammit! He had just received news of money moving suspiciously in Kusa, and he wanted to investigate _so badly_, but the old man threatened to keep him off active duty for another half year if he didn't behave. He was tempted to send shadow clones, but if he was found out…

Both Akashiori and Naruto in mindscape shuddered at the possible consequences; like he told Minato on his evaluation mission, the Sandaime could be a very sadistic man. The Hunter-nin was stuck with honing his skills and only plotting Stone's demise until Sandaime-Jijii gave him the green light.

So today, they ate ramen leisurely like shinobi during peacetime.

"I plan to shave his precious beard if the old fart doesn't put me on active duty within one week," Akashiori growled between slurps. "I'm sick of training. I've trained so much these past two months, I'm probably as good as all three Sannin put together."

Tsunade-babaa would kill him if she heard him say that.

"I know for a fact that he takes twenty minutes to groom that ugly thing every morning," he smirked.

Minato could see his prankster side emerging and shrunk back.

"And you're going to help me with it."

"Oh, no no no no. You're _not_ including me in that," Minato felt his heart sink at the innocent smile on Aka's face. If that smile turned even more innocent, he was going to request a long-term mission – screw his pride.

"Think of it as part of Naruto's rehab. He's much more of a prankster than I am. If it were up to him, he would dye all of Sandaime-Jijii's hair, and I mean ALL, in permanent pink."

Minato began to inch away, hoping Aka wouldn't notice he had Hiraishin-ed out of the stand until he was long gone.

No, too late, he groaned as a hand clamped down on his wrist.

"You're not scar–"

The older blonde looked over curiously as Aka suddenly cut off. He was staring at two jounin sitting several seats away. Minato jumped when the Hunter-nin tossed down coins without counting and dragged them out of the stand.

"Hey, Aka? What's wrong?"

"Minato, Hiraishin us to the Hokage's office," the Hunter-nin commanded full of authority. "I know you have a kunai in there."

"What–"

"Do it now!"

In a flash of yellow they disappeared and appeared in front of the Hokage's desk.

Before anyone could react, Akashiori barked at the leader of Konoha, "Hokage-sama! I just heard you dispatched Hatake Sakumo on a mission yesterday. Where did he go?"

Sarutobi's eyes flickered over to Minato. "Aka-kun, I cannot disclo–"

"Tell me!" The Hunter-nin raised his arm to touch his Fire tattoo.

Sarutobi's eyes widened as he understood the message

"The mission sent his team to Sand."

"I need to go after him. It slipped my mind to include the incident in my report," Akashiori tore at his hair in frustration. He glanced discreetly at Minato and switched to Hunter-nin code. "Boxes fill with venomous frogs. The apple withers as it jumps on ship. Scrolls dye green with the falling spring."

Sarutobi's pipe fell from his hand. "Thirty-two hours out, direct path."

Akashiori nodded. "I'll be taking Minato with me."

Turning to the baffled ANBU Captain, Akashiori demanded, "Take us to the West Gate. Hiraishin."

Seeing the urgency, Minato grabbed Aka by the waist and flashed to the gate. They barely touched down before Aka was running. Minato followed at once, perplexed by the mystery that was Uzuhara Naruto.

Several miles away from the village, Akashiori stopped them and ordered him to change into his ANBU uniform. He himself changed into the Hunter-nin gear sealed within his pack. Minato barely had the time to blush at Aka's lack of care for modesty while hastily shrugging on the clothes before they were running again.

"How many times can you safely shunshin each hour?"

"Three," Minato answered.

"Then we will be taking advantage of that. We have to catch up before they reach Sand."

Akashiori said nothing more except to command him for shunshin each hour, putting forth all of his energy in traveling his fastest. Several hours ago, he had affixed a blood-red mask on his face which he had prepared two months prior after his test on Team 9 and gestured Minato to do the same. They were on a mission, and he was going to put himself in complete mission-mode.

Minato was shocked at Aka's speed. No, shocked was an understatement. He was astounded. The Hunter-nin was traveling faster than he himself did and still kept going after twelve hours. That had given him twelve hours to study the other man who had covered his hair with a red cloth. The way he moved was strangely similar to Akahiori/Akamaki's movements – slightly animalistic and wild and efficient. Yet, Aka's movements were much stiffer and lacked the fluidity which Akashiori exhibited in abundance, making it seem like this Hunter-nin was suppressing himself. But otherwise, Aka and Akashiori carried the same basic style, and Minato couldn't help but overlap the two. Were Aka and Akashiori related in some way? Maybe the Hunter-nin Corps trained their shinobi in this style. But he had no evidence to back up the theory; they were the only two Hunter-nin he had ever met. This made him realize how little the ANBU actually knew about their rival organization.

Two days after leaving Konoha, Aka informed him they were an estimated nine hours away, which meant they were going to make the four day trip in less than three days. Minato had never heard of such a feat, or it was most likely that no one had even thought to attempt such an implausible challenge. He was surprised he had been able to keep up.

During their last break, he had asked the Hunter-nin how he was handling the strain and received four words in return: Two months of training. When he had asked about their self-assigned mission Aka explained the situation just as curtly.

"Hatake Sakumo's team is on a critical mission to Sand. He will be ambushed several miles outside the village. We must help him complete the mission."

That was it.

Minato shook his head, frustrated at the lack of information and thrown off balance by Aka's drastic transformation in attitude and behavior. He had wondered previously what Naruto was like on missions, but this was not what he expected. At all.

When the duo finally reached the team, Aka oddly didn't approach them and instead followed close, dodging behind sand dunes, while masking his chakra signature. The blood-masked face looked over at him, looked to the team, then looked back at him. Minato could tell he was frowning from his body posture.

"We must identify our enemies before showing ourselves," Aka elaborated. "I will be hiding both of our signatures. Travel close."

Minato was miffed at the subtle insult to his chakra control, which was excellent, thank you very much!

"Do not take offense. Our enemy is of high caliber," the Hunter-nin added apologetically. It appeared he had loosened up since they caught up to Team Sakumo.

Half a day later, only three miles from Sunagakure, Akashiori sensed chakra approaching the team from under the sand. Who was their attacker? In the Past, Sakumo and his team had escaped before finding out, but this time, Ahashiori was determined to flush them out.

Sakumo seemed to have sensed the hostile presence as well and had halted his team on alert. Then a strangled yelp came from one of the teammates who was yanked into the sand, disappearing completely out of sight. Aka swore.

"I'm going to get him. Watch over them and take out any enemy shinobi you cross. But do not show yourself to the team or the attackers. We cannot give them a chance to increase their forces to accommodate for us," he said before sinking underground.

The enemy finally showed themselves as Suna ANBU – possibly twenty, maybe more – attacking from all sides. Hidden from sight, Minato took out several who were unfortunate enough to pass him, but Sakumo's team was suffering under the barrage of attacks. No matter how good Team Sakumo was, there were too many elite Sand-nin for five shinobi.

Soon, the desert was littered with Suna shinobi, but all five teammates were staggering from grave injuries. The fifth member of the team had reappeared earlier from underground, a little confused at how he had escaped the sand but joined the fight immediately, yet the addition helped little, as more enemy shinobi joined the mess. When one dropped, another two took their place, overwhelming the Konoha-nin.

Minato had seen nothing of Aka, but he guessed the Hunter-nin was taking care of the enemies underground since there were no further attacks from beneath.

Without warning, Aka resurfaced to Sakumo's left and killed two Suna-nin who had been about to attack his blind spot.

Sakumo whipped around in surprise at the stranger who had saved him.

"Hatake, stay focused on your enemies," Aka growled as he gutted the attacker Sakumo had turned his back on. "I am your backup." Then turning to a dune to his far left, he called out, "Cheetah, join us now!"

With barely any warning, three Suna ANBU fell and a Konoha ANBU took their place, who added two more corpses right after he touched down.

"I know who our enemies are," Aka said to the man fighting behind him. "You killed her son and daughter-in-law many years ago."

"Who–?" Sakumo panted from exhaustion after killing another four.

"Think puppets."

"…puppeteer Chiyo of Sand…"

"These shinobi are controlled by her," the Hunter-nin explained as he decapitated a kunoichi. "She has prepared well for your arrival."

He was getting pissed off. The fallen puppets were reviving and now throwing themselves at the team.

"_Fuuton: Kazekiri no Jutsu (Wind Cutter)!"_

"_Raiton: Kuropansa (Black Panther)!"_

Both Akashiori and Sakumo shouted their attacks at the same time. A blade of wind from Akashiori and a large black panther of lightening from Sakumo razed through the enemy forces.

"That's amazing… You will have to teach me that when we return to Konoha," Akashiori remarked in dumbfounded awe. He heard a pained grunt from behind which he took as a yes.

After Minato and Akashiori joined the fight, the tide turned in their favor. As the best of Konoha were gathered here and fighting back to back, the time traveler remembered his battles with comrades from what seemed like a lifetime ago. He expected someone – Chouji, Temari, Lee, Kiba, _anyone_ – to show up at any second and toss him a quick grin before moving on to their next opponent. _Where are they, and why haven't they shown up yet?_

He could feel his mindscape trembling and knew he needed to finish this quickly or else both he and Naruto would mentally regress. His hands had started twitching five minutes ago, and his moves were getting increasingly chaotic. Akashiori and Naruto whimpered together when several shards of his mindscape sky fell loose in reaction to a head exploding in front of him, splattering his face with fleshy chunks. Oh god, he was going to lose control.

From behind, Sakumo sensed something wrong with his impromptu partner. Taking a glance, he was alarmed to see jerky movements and red chakra seeping out from the red-masked ally who had previously fought fluidly and steadily. He was about to address him when the Hunter-nin abruptly stopped and shouted in obvious agitation.

"Chiyo! Are you singlehandedly trying to initiate war between Sand and Leaf?"

The puppets around them faltered but picked right back up, fighting more ferociously than before. Akashiori wanted so badly to kill her off. Kill her. No, don't kill her. Kill her. No, don't kill her.

No, he couldn't kill her. He needed her for the antidote she developed to Hanzou's salamanders, and he couldn't risk losing track of Sasori.

"Hatake, Cheetah, cover me. I need to find her," he commanded before closing his eyes and opening his mind and chakra to search the surrounding dessert. At first, there were too many distractions from both his own diminishing control and the mass of puppets, but slowly, he picked out the chakra threads connecting each body and followed them back to a dune a hundred feet to his right.

He snapped his eyes open and took off in a blur, carving through ANBU puppets along the way. In seconds, he had engaged the woman in a taijutsu battle. His sanity splintered a bit more when he saw her face, over two decades younger, but at the same time wondered how his taijutsu skills would fare against hers now that she was healthier and he much better trained than two years prior. Last time, he stood no chance, but now both were improved by movement of time.

Akashiori grinned impishly at his upper hand as he landed another blow, but his mind was in danger of crumbling. He leapt back a distance away and cursed the sand making physical fuuinjutsu almost impossible. He whipped out a blank tag and a brush, drew a seal with his chakra as ink and threw it into her stomach with speed too fast to dodge. It hit the central tenketsu point of her chakra coils and activated with a sharp jerk, wrapping the puppeteer in invisible symbols lined by his chakra and powered by her own.

_Yes!_ It was risky – seventy-five percent chance of failing– but it was the only way he knew to stop a seal expert who could negate any confinement seals with their own seals.

"Chiyo, call them off. You've lost."

"Not until Hatake dies," she snarled.

"And what if you die?" A kunai pressed against her neck. "What will happen to Sasori if you die?"

"He will thank me."

"But you are why his heart has not yet frozen. Stop the attack and return to his side. Killing Hatake will only teach your grandson that murder is the solution to any problem."

Tears filled her eyes and flowed down her cheeks. "The scum ruined our lives. He deserves to die."

"Then what of his son? His son will grow cold as well, and just as you saw with Sasori, no child should lose their beloved parents."

The puppets faltered, launched again, and then crumbled. Silence blanketed the sand.

Sakumo staggered over to them, trailing blood, and fell to his knees, kneeling with his hands and forehead pressed to the sand.

"Chiyo-sama," he gasped out with strength and sincerity behind his voice. "I offer my deepest apologies and beg your forgiveness. I have regretted their deaths every day since I saw your grandson's eyes. I cannot apologize for completing my mission, but I beg your forgiveness for the pain I have caused you and the boy." He didn't move from his position even as blood pooled under him.

The hatred didn't die, but it dulled as she slumped in her restraints. "Stand up, boy. Come here and let me see your face."

Clutching his bleeding chest, he hauled himself over. Chiyo swept her eyes over his wounds and up to his eyes which were bright with unshed tears as well. She hung her head in defeat but made one more request.

"My actions so far were for my grandson, but allow me one hit for myself."

With only slight hesitation, Sakumo nodded his acceptance and closed his eyes, hoping he would live to see his son again but knowing this was the right thing to do. He sensed something approaching from behind but remained unmoving, ready to receive the physical manifestation of her hatred.

But the blow never came.

He carefully opened his eyes when he heard sobbing from the woman and saw a shadow cast from behind him. Turning around he saw a blade – his own sabre – millimeters from his neck. Whirling back around, he engulfed the Chiyo in a tight hug, crying silently with her, repeating apologies and his gratitude over and over and over.

Akashiori watched the scene silently with a small smile, but as an image of a droopy-eyed Kakashi-sensei appeared in his mind, he screamed and collapsed, burying his head under his arms to suppress the memories bubbling up from the new cracks in his mindscape.

Both Sakumo and Chiyo, whose containment seal had snapped as soon as Akashiori fell, rushed over in a panic. Sakumo raised the whimpering man to a sitting position, trying to see what was wrong, but neither he nor Chiyo could find anything other than superficial injuries.

"Hunter-san, Hunter-san!" Sakumo shook his shoulders gently.

Suddenly, the older man was thrown violently aside, and Akashiori was pulled into a warm embrace.

"Aka," Minato murmured softly into the Hunter-nin's ear as he maneuvered the smaller blonde into his lap, removing both their masks. "Aka, listen to me. Your name is Aka, and I'm Minato. Listen to my voice. Come back to me."

At the familiar voice, Akashiori's trembling and keening lessened. He sagged into the strong support and buried his face into Minato's neck.

"Aka, who are you?"

"I-I'm…Aka."

"Who am I?"

"Mi…M-Mi-na-to."

"Where are you now?"

Akashiori's shuddered, but the arms around him held tighter, lending him strength.

"Suna…" he said with more confidence.

"Yes, we are both at Suna, so come back to me."

Slowly, very slowly, the Hunter-nin calmed, and many minutes later, he shakily raised his face to look at Minato's.

"Thank you," he breathed.

He looked around to regain his bearings and froze at the shocked expressions from Chiyo, Sakumo, and his teammates. Akashiori blushed and dropped his face back onto Minato's shoulder with a frustrated groan.

"There is no end to my embarrassment, is there, Oinari-sama?"

Kami, he _hated_ that word.

* * *

**A/N:** Sooo... What did you think of Sakumo? Can you give me advice on how I should write his character?

I didn't want to use 'Aka-chan' as Shiro's nickname for Akashiori because it means baby in Japanese…or would it be cute? (Aka throwing a tantrum, maybe? :P )

Next chapter: Sakumo & Aka meet properly. Enter Kakashi. How does Minato react?

_June 10, 2012_


	11. Heart Like Mine

**A/N: **Happy One Month Anniversary! (Uhh…five days ago.) I'm waaay late, but let's celebrate anyway.

I started 'Escape Artist' on Saturday, May 12, 2012 with no idea where this would go. I only had a beginning, an end, and the pairing. This story has taken a life of its own because I never planned for Naruto's insanity, Haikage, Hanzou, Chiyo, or _anything at all_. Really, I don't even have a plot outlined for this. Oh well, happy, happy anniversary, and thanks for staying with me this far!

**A/N #2:** My dear readers have spoken, and I shall grant your request. I originally wasn't going to add Sakumo into the mix of relationships, but he will now be getting a little piece of the show. _Gradually_ though. Naruto's still as oblivious about love and attraction as he was at age 12. But maybe Sakumo will do a better job than Minato, who's also pretty dense ;)

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Chapter 11: Heart Like Mine**

Akashiori sat on the floor, his forearms balanced loosely on bent knees in front and head tilted upwards against the wall. He sighed for what seemed like the twentieth time in two hours.

Next to him, Minato stood patiently as always, infuriatingly calm with lips twitching into a badly hidden smirk at every sigh. Had Uzuhara Naruto been on the surface, he would have scrunched his face and stuck out his tongue, but Akashiori had too much pride to do something so juvenile. So instead, he sent death glares in retaliation.

They were waiting opposite the double doors leading into the Third Kazekage's office for Sakumo to emerge from his meeting. No amount of subtle probing and blatant questioning had Akashiori been able to get him to disclose the mission details. Honorable men were the bane of his life, the Hunter-nin thought as he elbowed Minato's knee to wipe away the latest smirk.

After facing Chiyo, the group had immediately headed for Sunagakure. Akashiori had attempted to join the meeting but was promptly kicked out even when he insisted he had the Hokage's approval. He had sent Shiro back to get Konoha's side of the mission, but he needed Suna's part, as well as knowledge of the conversation between the two in the office to make any judgment on the situation.

But those men were stubborn, so he decided to join the meeting shinobi style.

Akashiori had tried to slip one of his fox summons inside the room but had been foiled by the security seals. Then he had tried to infiltrate the room by transforming into a beetle but had been foiled again by a different set of security seals. So the Seal Master had tried to take apart all of the seals on the office but discovered over thirty of them, which would take him half a year at the very least.

Two hours later, he had storm clouds in his mindscape and seriously considered pulling Haikage's rank to order stupid Hatake to tell him.

He grumbled under his breath.

A hand ruffled his hair as the ANBU Captain squatted down to peer at his face.

"Hey, calm down," Minato said and grinned when Aka knocked away the hand. "I'm sure you'll find out from Hokage-sama. Let's tour around the village for now."

The smaller blonde shot Minato another death glare when the hand settled back on his head. On top of everything, this idiot had watched all of his attempts with a smirk permanently etched on that face he wanted to Katon so badly, and how much he liked those eartails would hold no weight when he would make his decision to burn it all off.

"I need to know how this will affect relations between Suna and Konoha," he objected, "and I need to find out before we leave."

Minato tilted his head quizzically. "What exactly do you do for the Hokage? Aside from typical Hunter-nin missions."

Instantly, all expression smoothed away from Akashiori's face. "I cannot tell you that, Minato. That is between Hokage-sama and myself. All I will say is that my work pertains to international relations," he said coolly.

Minato smiled and sighed gently. "It's okay, Aka, I'm sorry for prying." He sat down next to the Hunter-nin and studied his hard profile. "Just let me know if you ever need anything, and I'll do my best to help."

At Minato's soft words of acceptance, Akashiori's tension uncoiled and he hung his head. "Please forgive me," he turned his tired eyes towards Minato. "I overreacted. Stress from recent inaction and the last several days have been wearing down on my cognitive functions."

"Dummy, there's nothing to forgive," he slung a comforting arm over Aka's shoulders, surprised at the absence of his friend's usual flinch. "You'll have more chances to ask him over the next few days."

He felt a resigned nod from next to him, and they fell silent again.

Half an hour later, he felt Aka's head slump against his side after giving up the fight to stay awake. Chuckling about how the sleeping shinobi would no doubt jump away in mortification when he woke in this position, Minato brushed aside the messy bangs for a closer look at his unguarded face. With this chance for unobstructed study, he noted the Hunter-nin's breathing made no sound even in sleep, an indication of familiarity with situations where a lapse in stealth could lead to immediate death. Seeing the thin lines on his cheeks, Minato wondered how he came to have those whisker mark scars. Maybe it was from his torture sessions in the past, Minato thought with an inward wince.

He considered the mental scars which Naruto suffered. Over the two months of the inaction he had mentioned, Naruto had strengthened enough for Minato to stay in his mind for around an hour each day. He had gotten to watch the gradual repair of the grey sky, grass sprouting from the barren ground, and Naruto's personality calming and returning to that of before.

Minato had been disturbed the first time he heard Naruto giggle in his mindscape. The sound was unsettling coming from of someone with so much pride, and both he and Naruto were relieved that it was one of the first things to fade. Naruto had been so thrilled that the grey sky lightened a shade as he whooped in glee. All in all, it was a fascinating experience. He had never been in his own mindscape, but according to Yamanaka-san, Naruto's was the most elaborate he had ever walked. Could that mean Naruto knew his own mind better than anyone else did their own? What made Naruto so different? He had vaguely mentioned something about reshaping, but how did that work?

Before he knew it, Minato's floating thoughts and the warm weight at his side drew him into a doze.

That was the scene Sakumo and the Kazekage walked into as they exited the office. They saw two boys sleeping against the wall, the smaller blonde leaning against the larger blonde who had an arm around the other and his cheek pressed to unruly hair.

It was a sweet sight. Both men wondered how these two innocent-looking boys could be two of the deadliest shinobi, but their actions when the door opened were evidence of their competence as they saw both boys tense, unnoticeable to anyone aside from the most capable of ninja. Both opened alert blue eyes as they assessed the situation and relaxed only after sensing no danger.

"Kazekage-sama, Hatake-san, I hope your meeting is progressing smoothly," the Hunter-nin greeted as he extracted himself hastily from Minato who also rose to his feet with another smirk. To Akashiori's irritation, the two men nodded but didn't reveal any details or even a tiny hint of what that progress entailed.

Instead, the Kazekage turned to the three and bowed.

"Hatake-san, Namikaze-san, Aka-san. I must apologize for the actions of my citizens and the harm they have caused you and your team. It was a grave error on my part to have allowed such an attack to occur, and words will never be enough to express my regret. The perpetrators will be duly punished for their actions. If you would like, I will leave the method up–"

"No!"

Three pairs of surprised eyes swiveled to look at the Hunter-nin.

Despite his firm stand against Chiyo's punishment, Akashiori's eyes dropped in embarrassment. "I-I mean…I believe we should also consider her side of the story…" he trailed off lamely.

However, Sakumo agreed. "I was about to suggest the same. Her actions, while extreme, were fueled by the consequences of my actions in the past. She had the option of killing me but chose not to. I have already forgiven her. No, I'm the one who wishes for her forgiveness. Furthermore, we have already been healed. Please do not punish Chiyo-san."

"You are too kind," the powerful leader sighed, considering their defense.

"Very well. She will not escape punishment, but the sentence will be reduced at your request. Sunagakure is in your debt, Hatake-san, as she is an asset to my village, regardless of her foolishness."

"Kazekage-Jij…er…Kazekage-sama," three pairs of eyebrows rose at Akashiori's slip. He his eyes dropped again in embarrassment, inwardly cursing Naruto's awful manners. "Please don't mention anything about this to Sasori unless Chiyo-san decides to tell him. He is merely a child, and his mind is fragile. I hope he will not suffer from her decisions."

The Kazekage smiled and nodded. "I will follow your wishes, Aka-san." He chuckled. "I do not know what to make of you, Hunter-san. You are a seasoned fighter immersed in the darkest side of shinobi life, yet you are innocent and unmarked by its cruelties. That is an admirable quality."

Within his mindscape, Naruto couldn't help but chuckle darkly at the irony.

That evening over dinner, Minato finally had a chance to introduced Sakumo and the Hunter-nin.

Akashiori was fascinated by how the man was like a more refined version of Kakashi-sensei, and he was most qualified to make that observation because the Kakashi he last saw was probably around the same age as Sakumo now. The two Hatakes were no doubt father and son, but while Kakashi could look and act commanding at times, Sakumo held the natural air and mannerisms of a leader without effort. Every feature and every action screamed confidence.

He didn't know whether it was because of Kakashi-sensei's lazy habits, but the duo fit the stereotype of the elder always looking wiser and more powerful even when the offspring reached the same age. Like how the ex-king would always seem more distinguished than the prince-turned-king, or how the predecessor would always seem more knowledgeable than the successor.

"Sakumo-senpai, this is Aka, Hunter-nin of Konoha. Aka, this is Hatake Sakumo-san, the most powerful shinobi in Konoha."

Sakumo coughed into the glass of water he had been about to drink from but grinned charmingly. (Naruto snickered from his mindscape as he guessed the father also had a much, much bigger fanclub than the son.)

"Minato-kun! I'm nowhere near the most powerful," he denied. "I could never measure up to you, Hokage-sama, and countless others in Konoha."

"Hah, he's too modest," Minato mock whispered to Aka. "He beat Jiraiya-sensei in a fair match just a few months ago, and Orochimaru-senpai always disappears during Sakumo-senpai's Shinobi Assessment."

Akashiori didn't know whether to grin, scowl, or slump at the mention of the Sannin, so he pasted one of Naruto's childhood fake smiles. "I was quite impressed by the incredible lightning panther jutsu you used earlier. I believe you agreed to teach me the move."

"Did I say that?" He set an elbow on the table to lean his chin in his hand, head tilted in thought and eyes fixed on the Hunter-nin's face.

Sakumo laughed as he recalled his replying grunt to Aka's request during battle. "I guess I did, Aka-kun. It would be a pleasure to teach such a talented student. And thank you, both of you, for saving me and my team earlier. You were the impressive ones."

As the Past's history and the man's demise came to mind, Akashiori hid his grimace behind another fake smile, biting out a curt reply, "It was nothing."

"We only helped out a bit at the end," Minato agreed.

That night in the privacy of the rooms provided for their stay, Sakumo asked a question which had been nagging him since the ambush.

"Aka-kun, how did you know of Chiyo's plans?"

_Shit…_

Akashiori projected grave professionalism.

"I received intel from an inside source about strange activities within Suna. Money trails, imports, unexplained movements at night," he lied. "I made the connection that they were targeting your team when those activities stopped several days ago and when I heard that you left for an important mission at the same time."

To Akashiori's relief, Sakumo ate up the story. The man placed his hand firmly on the Hunter-nin's shoulder in gratitude. "I cannot thank you enough. I owe you and Minato-kun my life and the lives of my teammates. You two are truly the epitome of protectors serving Konoha."

"Nah, like Minato said, we only helped at the end." Despite flinching under the hand, a bit of Naruto slipped harmlessly through. He pulled away and settled his arm on Minato's shoulder but was unable to hide the flattered grin on his lips.

While Sakumo studied the Hunter-nin in puzzlement, Minato looked down at him in surprise. This was the first sign of a stable Naruto he had seen on the surface since his long-term mission. It was also the first time in the last two months that he had initiated casual contact.

Minato frowned inwardly. Was it because of Hatake-senpai?

They conversed pleasantly through the evening. A little more of Naruto laughed with them as he finally relaxed in the presence of a new acquaintance. Sometime during the conversation, he had gotten comfortable enough to share his real name. It was only his first name, but it made him seem a bit more alive and those sapphire orbs a bit more vibrant.

That was until Sakumo made an innocent comment which meant much more to Naruto even before the he himself understood why.

"Oh, Minato-kun, isn't it your birthday in a few days? The twenty-fifth, right? How old are you turning?"

"What?" Minato paused, eyebrows raised, and then chuckled lightly. "That completely slipped my mind. I don't know how you remembered, but thank you for reminding me. I'm turning twenty."

Naruto froze.

'Kyuu…it's January right?' He asked uneasily. 'W-what happened to my birthday?'

Kyuubi also froze, not knowing how to answer.

'October. It's in October. Where was I in October?'

'_Kit…'_ the fox trailed off.

Minato looked to his side when he felt a tug on his wrist. "Naruto?"

"Minato…" a confused expression met Minato's eyes blankly when Kyuubi offered no words, "I'm nineteen…"

The older blonde's eyes widened as he caught on immediately, hoping against hope that he wasn't referring to a certain time and that the birthdate didn't match up to that time. To the side, Sakumo watched the exchange curiously with silent questions about the sudden changes in the Hunter-nin's behavior and recalling the breakdown in the desert, as well as the sudden lift in mood earlier. He recognized glaring signs of mental instability.

"I don't know what happened to my birthday. I used to be eighteen. Where was I on the tenth of October?"

Minato's heart sank. "Naruto, I guess your birthday slipped your mind too, but let's celebrate ours together, alright?" He tried to lead the Hunter-nin's thoughts away from the date. "We'll take a day off and find some fun things to do around the village. We'll have ramen for dinner and maybe light some small fireworks and have cake. What's your favorite flavor?"

"It was Hanzou, wasn't it?" His lost eyes darkened in remembrance.

Minato switched tactics. "Aka. Aka. Are you there?" He tried to call out the Hunter-nin persona before Naruto slipped too far.

"Minato, I-I spent my nineteenth birthday being tortured, didn't I?"

Sakumo's breath stuck in his throat. The pieces which were previously disjointed now fell into place. The breakdown, mood shifts, flinching. They could all be explained as remnants of such trauma. _This young man survived torture just several months ago, but he's already back in the field,_ he noted with admiration and concern as he mentally listed the methods to calm victims, _and he's only nineteen._ He now realized why both blondes' eyes had hardened when the Kazekage made his remark about Naruto's innocence.

"_Didn't I?"_ Naruto repeated the question with distraught emphasis.

"Hey, where are Aka and Shiro?" Minato brushed aside his friend's messy bangs to better see into his eyes.

Naruto gripped Minato's wrist. "Aka and I are starting to mix back together. Shiro says that's good. If I get through this one myself, I'll get better. But…but…the memories are starting to come up," Naruto looked over at Sakumo and flinched.

_Kakashi-sensei…_

Sakumo saw a glimpse of the wild, glazed eyes before they snapped away as if the boy had seen something terrifying in him.

"Do you want me go to in?" Minato asked with urgency, wrapping some of his chakra around Naruto's hand.

Naruto shook his head forcefully and tried to calm his shallow breaths. "I have to do this outside. We just have some more. Just some more until the sky is fixed." His grip on Minato's wrist was almost bruising.

He squeezed his eyes shut to concentrate on the layers upon layers of memories seeping out, slowly opening himself to accept them instead of letting the fear of discovery overwhelm his mind. They were of his last years in Academy and the first few years as genin when he had begun the long road to proving himself worthy of acknowledgement. These weren't too bad. Disappointment and ridicule, fear and anxiety, failure and loss. But these weren't too bad…

Naruto could feel tears spilling out as thoughts of how he had fallen so low circled around these memories. He was supposed to be strong enough to become the Rokudaime Hokage, damn it! But here he was, barely able to face himself. Moreover, he was showing this pathetic side of him to the future Yondaime Hokage whom he had idolized so many years ago and still looked up to even through resentment.

_Do I still resent Namikaze Minato?_ The question floated forward from the back of his mind.

No, he decided, he didn't resent _this_ Minato. This Minato was unrelated to the Past Yondaime because his return to the past had changed the man, and the Past Naruto was going to make sure this time's Naruto would never go through the same horrors he did.

He felt a pang in his heart which he identified as jealousy but shoved it aside immediately.

His new promises gave his broken ones a steadier ground to rest and with them went some of his sorrow. Gradually, Naruto's breaths evened out as the memories calmed and settled. The negative feelings were still there, but it wasn't shredding – only pounding.

He opened his eyes, bright once more, and grinned.

"I made it."

At those three solid words, Minato met the grin with a proud smile and ruffled his friend's hair. "Good job. Where are you with the sky?"

"The hard part's still coming, but it shouldn't be too long now."

"And how's that trench?"

"Uhh…" he shuffled his feet guiltily, "that's still there. I think Aka was right about it taking ages to fix."

"One step at a time, Naruto. Now can you let go of my wrist?"

Naruto glanced down and swore when he saw the bruised skin under his hand. He pursed his lips in displeasure and looked at it helplessly.

"Hey, it's fine," Minato said gently, coating his other hand in green healing chakra and applying it to the injury. "See?"

Naruto examined the healed wrist in relief. He opened his mouth to ask for lessons in medical techniques when a cough from the side caught their attention and caused both blondes to jump and blush. Naruto had forgotten about Sakumo standing in the room with them and that he had seen the entire embarrassing show. He braced himself for the questions and pity that were sure to come.

"Sorry Sakumo-senpai. We got, um, distracted," Minato frowned, also bothered by the audience.

"Don't worry, boys. It was my fault."

"No, no, no. It wasn't your fault," Naruto waved his hands to refute the claim. "I was the one who freaked out. But um…"

"I won't ask, Naruto-kun. I've already forgotten it," Sakumo chuckled at Naruto's surprise. "If both of you are taking the day off, perhaps I could treat you to dinner–" He cut off when Minato's lips twitch downwards ever so slightly and wondered in amusement whether the ANBU Captain realized his own displeased expression. "On the other hand, how about I treat you two after we return to Konoha? The next several days will be quite busy."

At the indirect mention of the mission, Naruto reflexively brought out Akashiori for another attempt at extracting information from the man. He was pleased to note that the act was becoming more of a shift than a replacement of personas.

"Hatake-san, may I have a word with you?" Akashiori turned to Minato and squeeze a shoulder. "I apologize, Minato. This concerns my work for Sandaime-Jijii. However, I can come find you when I finish here. What would you like to do?"

"I'll wait," Minato answered a bit too quickly. "We should review what just happened before we sleep."

"Thank you. I will be out soon."

As they left the private lounge, a stab of guilt shot through him for keeping secrets from the Minato who had stuck by him and had been his support from the very beginning. He hadn't asked a single question about his work except the one earlier nor had he pressed for answers. It wouldn't be surprising if he had already worked out the inconsistencies and was just holding back for courtesy's sake.

Akashiori spared a last glance back.

Just before the door closed behind them, cutting off his view of the man leaning patiently against the wall, he made a silent promise to himself and to Minato that he would somehow amend that.

The room they entered was a luxurious guest room. At the sight, another memory bubbled up. It was of one of his many visits to Suna when Gaara had been the Godaime Kazekage. The image of Gaara's silent glare when he had asked for directions to a nearby hotel was a warm mix of bitter and sweet and brought a smile to his lips. And how he had taught his stuffy friend (forced him to learn) the fun of bouncing on those immaculately prepared beds. Seeing the stoic leader of Sunagakure bouncing on the mattress with an awed expression on his face had been one of the funniest moments in his life.

_Gaara…_

"Naruto-kun?"

The Hunter-nin jumped when Sakumo bent down to look into his unfocused eyes. When had he gotten so close, and how had he not sensed him?

"Thinking of something?" Sakumo asked with a wink as he led them over to armchairs.

"What?"

"You blanked out with a cute smile when you walked in. Pleasant thoughts?"

Akashiori sputtered at the word 'cute' but smiled again softly. "Yes…it was a…good memory. Yes, Suna is filled with wonderful memories."

Sakumo marveled at the honesty and the innocence that the Kazekage had accurately perceived. His question had meant to tease but its original intent had been lost when it reached Naruto's ears, and out of those softly smiling lips came such purity and sincerity. How surprising for one who had been through as much as he. Or maybe not surprising if it was Naruto.

"So, Naruto-kun, what is it you wanted to speak to me about?"

"Hatake-san, perhaps it would be better if you called me by my codename Aka during this meeting," Akashiori said as he stood and fastened his red mask.

Suddenly, he was dangerous.

This was no longer a troubled young man but a full-fledged veteran tracker and killer who knew perfectly well just how deadly he was and who had already instinctively calculated all the ways to kill him in an instant. The friendly gait from a moment ago was gone; now his presence was one of a commander and predator. Sakumo could guess what the Hunter-nin wanted – he had been asking all day – and under the authoritative force and piercing gaze of this man, he didn't know if he could stand his ground.

"Hatake-san, I am in need of the details to this mission and the business between Konoha and Suna. I was hoping you could tell me about it."

Sakumo shivered at the combination of polite wording, chilling undertone, and demanding eyes.

However, Sakumo also knew how powerful and dangerous he himself was and drew his body to its full height, a full head taller than the Hunter-nin. "Aka-san, I am afraid I cannot do that, as I have sworn an oath of secrecy. I can and will only reveal the details to Hokage-sama and Kazekage-sama."

Akashiori clenched his jaw. "I have already received the Konoha side of this mission. You merely need to share your progress here."

Sakumo replied without missing a beat. "I still cannot say."

Trying to get anything from this man was like pulling teeth. From the resolute tone and posture, Akashiori could tell the man wasn't going to back down even in the face of death, and he certainly couldn't kill the man for being loyal to their village. That would defeat the purpose of saving the man and leave Kakashi-sensei as an orphan once again.

Beyond frustrated, he allowed himself to flare a compressed burst of killing intent, all of it concentrated on Hatake, before stepping back to lean his hip against the chair and think.

Sakumo released a deep shuddering breath; that instant of pressure was more petrifying than any he had felt before. This Hunter-nin was angry and ready to snap at him from irritation – or maybe he had already snapped – and it scared him shitless.

Regardless, he would _never_ betray Konoha.

Heavy silence stretched for minutes until Akashiori straightened again, this time with his spine taller than ever and eyes full of conviction. He reached into his pouch to unseal a scroll which he clutched in a death grip and snapped his hard, calculating eyes up to Sakumo's.

This was a different Aka than before.

"Hatake-san, do you know who I hate working against the most?" The Hunter-nin asked, voice like honey but tone like steel.

Sakumo answered by narrowing his eyes.

"I hate dealing with honorable men like you who have the mind and will to uphold his principles. They make the best teammates but the worst enemies," Akashiori paused. "But we are not supposed to be enemies, are we?"

Without waiting for a reply, he continued in an overpowering voice of a true commander. "Hatake Sakumo, loyal shinobi of Konohagakure, I order you as Sandaime Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen's second-in-command to report the details of your current mission to Sunagakure." He handed over the scroll in his hand. "This scroll holds proof of my position and authority. What will your answer be?"

To say that Sakumo was shocked would be the understatement of the century.

This was the farthest from anything he had expected. He had thought of the possibility of an imposter or treason, the possibility of a test of loyalty, or even the possibility of an egotistical man who had grown too arrogant. The prodigious mind he had been gifted with had come up with a long list of possibilities in less than a minute…

But not this.

He never even thought to consider possibility because it was so far-fetched. This unassuming young man, nineteen years of age, vulnerable and dependent, kind and mischievous, damaged and suffering, with neither name nor face recognizable in the village as _Hokage-sama's right hand man_? In the thirty some-odd years of his life, he had come across many unbelievable claims, more often than not false, but this was the most unbelievable of them all.

However, here in his hands was the official document, signed in blood, chakra, and Kage-level security seals proving Aka's claim true. It also stated that all demands and actions by this Hunter-nin were considered to have come from the Sandaime Hokage and were to be carried out with his full backing.

His usual composure couldn't keep up with the information just revealed. The scroll slipped from his hands when his arms went slack, but it was snatched from the air, resealed, and replaced in Aka's pouch before he could blink.

"Hatake-san?"

The Hunter-nin's voice was gentler, missing that razor-sharp edge which had skimmed dangerously over his skin. He was back to the previous Aka.

"Since we are to be working closely together, perhaps I should introduce myself properly. My full name is Uzuhara Naruto. My full Hunter-nin codename is Akashiori, but I am known as Akamaki to those who are unfortunate enough to have heard of me. You are now the third person in this world, aside from myself, to know the connection between Akashiori and Akamaki, and the second to know their connection to Uzuhara Naruto. I hope to keep it that way, Hatake-san." Akashiori's eyes hardened again through the eyeholes of the mask. "Please refer to me as Aka on duty and Naruto off duty."

"Does Minato-kun know?" _Sakumo's subtle request for time to collect himself._

_Akashiori made the allowance._ "He only knows the relationship between Akashiori and Akamaki. He does not know that Naruto and they are the same entity, though, I believe he suspects a connection between Aka and Akashiori. He is as shrewd as he is honorable," Akashiori grimaced, "much like you."

Sakumo nodded his thanks before pulling out a scroll and offering it to the Hunter-nin. "Here are the mission details, Aka-sama."

Akashiori snorted lightly, the tension in his shoulders dissipating. "It's Aka. That honorific, or any honorific, is not befitting for this name."

Sakumo's arched his eyebrow quizzically. The Hunter-nin worded the reply as if he owned a different name that did match the honorific, which wasn't so unbelievable since he already held three.

"Hatake-san. I will have this back to you by the morning. I appreciate your cooperation, as well as your unwavering loyalty to Konohagakure. You will be called upon for further services in the future," Akashiori tilted his head forward in the smallest of bows. "I must take my leave. I should not keep Minato waiting any longer."

The smaller man removed his mask, and he was suddenly the softly smiling young man with soulful sky-blue eyes again.

"Do you want to come with us?" Even his speech had changed.

"Thank you for the invitation, Naruto-kun, but I need to retire early. I have an early morning with the Kazekage tomorrow."

"Hatake-san…I'm really sorry for pulling rank earlier," Naruto said remorsefully. "I know you were just doing your job, and you were doing it really well, too. And…please don't treat me like your superior. I don't want to be considered one, at least not when I'm Naruto or even when I'm Aka."

"Kazekage-sama was right about not knowing what to make of you," Sakumo chuckled. "I can't do that when you are Aka-san, but I'll be your equal when you are Naruto-kun, so you must call me Sakumo in return."

Naruto furrowed his brow. "Hmm…I guess you're way too young to be another 'old man,' so you're my senpai," he grinned and backed out of the room. "Well, I'll leave you to your beauty sleep, Sakumo-senpai. Good night!"

Before his door swung shut, Sakumo saw Naruto attack Minato with apologies for taking too long and Minato respond by slinging an arm over the smaller man's shoulders to steer the two out of sight. With a bemused shake of his head, Sakumo accepted the young man for who he was and felt respect, which had nothing to do with rank, swell within him.

* * *

The rest of their stay in Suna was uneventful. After Naruto skipped out of Sakumo's room, he had remained the cheerful Uzuhara Naruto, only slipping into his Hunter-nin persona when he met with the Kazekage and Sakumo. Minato didn't know how he'd done it, but Naruto had somehow gotten tight-lipped Sakumo-senpai to give in and talk and even convinced the Kazekage to allow him into the meetings. Incredible.

He tried not to feel left out, but waiting, training, and rereading jutsu scrolls alone for hours at a time made it a little difficult to ignore. It was irrational. Duty came first, and who was he to demand entrance into political affairs?

However, his birthday – their birthday – more than made up for his displeasure. Naruto took half the day off, and during their stroll through the village, they stumbled across Suna's civilian gaming arcade. It had been a surprise and a laugh to learn that Naruto had frequented casinos for the last six years but had never even _heard_ _of_ an arcade. Then they watched expert puppeteers at work, and spent the rest of the night just as Minato had planned: Suna's best ramen for dinner, hand-held fireworks, and a cake with nineteen plus one candles. Naruto had thanked him with a huge smile and a desperate hug for giving him the best birthday so far even if it wasn't the official day. That smile, bigger and brighter than any Minato had ever seen, was the greatest birthday gift anyone could have given him.

Now on the journey back to Konoha, Minato watched Naruto fidget, and it got worse as they neared the village. As they crossed the West Gate, he had even begun to slow his pace.

"Naruto, what's wrong?"

Naruto threw Minato a pitiful look. "Sandaime-Jijii is going to kill me," he smiled weakly. "I forgot to report to him over the last week. He sent his monkey summons to check up on us, but I got distracted and…brushed him off."

Minato's jaw dropped open. "You brushed off Hokage-sama's direct messenger?"

Naruto nodded and fidgeted once more. "Twice. I brushed him off twice… You'll help me face him right? The old man can be a devil when he wants to, and I'm pretty sure he's been stewing for a few days…"

"…I can try but I don't know what went on, and I didn't send any of my summons either," Minato paled. "I think I might also be in the red zone."

Naruto blanched. "Crap, that's right. I dragged you with me without permission," he dropped his face into his palms with a groan. "That's another mark against me."

Sakumo chuckled from behind at these two elite shinobi bemoaning their irresponsibility and possible doom, especially Naruto who was supposed to be second highest in the chain of command.

"Naruto-kun, Minato-kun. You will be fine," he assured them, hiding his amusement behind a cough. "If not, I will be there to support your case."

Hope shined in Naruto's eyes, and relief in Minato's.

"You'd do that?"

"Of course." Sakumo set a hand on Naruto head as he had seen Minato do often but pulled it back in disappointment when he felt the flinch. "You two saved our lives, after all."

He then smirked and added, "But only if you come over for dinner tonight. Kakashi would love to see you again, Minato-kun, and I would like you to meet my son, Naruto-kun. I'm sure he would be eager to befriend a delightful young man like you."

Naruto sputtered again as he seemed to do often in Sakumo's presence but tensed a moment later. Seeing Kakashi-sensei… He feared his reaction to seeing someone from the Past. Aside from the Sandaime, he had only officially met people he had heard stories about. But the one time he saw the child version of Iruka-sensei from afar, he had turned into a hysterical mess of tears. He didn't know how he would react to interacting with the child version of Kakashi-sensei who had been just as precious to him.

Naruto forced one of his fake smiles. "Of course, Sakumo-senpai! That would be great. I bet your son looks just like you."

While Sakumo laughed, Minato furrowed his brow. He couldn't help thinking that something seemed off about Naruto's expression, and this hadn't been the first time either. Since arriving in Suna, he had sensed something strange multiple times, but he couldn't tell what or why. The first time had been during dinner on their first evening at Suna, and it had appeared many times after. There seemed to be little consistency in their appearances, but he was sure it had something to do with Naruto's past and possibly related to Sakumo-senpai. But they had only met a week ago…

* * *

Just as Sakumo said, the meeting with the Sandaime-Jijii had turned out fine. There had only been a full hour of scolding and lecturing, and it was only a week of night-shift Gate Watch Duty. At least Minato would be joining him half of the time… Who was he kidding; the meeting had sucked. The only reason Gate Watch was only one week was because the Hokage needed him for other missions.

Naruto shook his head to rid himself of the dread of the boring task.

Now he, Minato, and Sakumo were heading to the man's house for another dreaded task of dinner with Kakashi. It's a wonder that he hadn't run away yet. He had pulled out his deception skills to hide his anxiety, but it didn't seem to be working since Minato was throwing him worried looks. He was an idiot to think he could remain undetected under his friend's sharp, perceptive eyes, especially when those eyes were familiar with every one of his expressions, but thankfully Minato was also tactful and held back from mentioning his agitation in front of Sakumo.

By the time Sakumo unlocked the entrance to his clan compound, Naruto was suppressing the urge grab onto Minato's ANBU vest like a child to calm his nerves, and he was only able to hold back because, like Minato, he didn't want to ruin Sakumo's lighthearted mood.

Without warning, the door to the main house flew open and a small silver blur knocked into the man.

"Dad!"

Naruto snapped his eyes to the owner of the voice, swallowed, and stared. Kami, it was miniature-Kakashi-sensei, and he was _adorable_. The skinny kid was barely four feet tall with part of his height made up by his signature spiky hair. His eyes didn't droop, and he showed more positive enthusiasm in ten seconds than Kakashi-sensei did over any single mission.

And he wasn't wearing a mask! No one had ever succeeded in finding out what was under that infuriating mask, and to find out this way was hilarious, yet at the same time like something was tearing at his insides. The unveiled face was grinning widely at Sakumo, chattering about his week and asking about the mission. This little boy only had eyes for his father.

"Kakashi, wait a minute. There's someone I'd like you to meet," Sakumo turned his son around to face the two blondes. "You remember Minato-kun, right?"

Kakashi nodded slowly but his suspicious gaze was focused on the stranger.

"Now, I want you to meet Naruto-kun. This incredible man saved mine and my teammates' lives from an ambush on our mission. He is the reason I made it home today." He looked up from his son. "Naruto-kun, this is my boy, Kakashi."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes and took a bold step forward.

Naruto stepped tentatively forward and formed another fake smile down (down!) at him. "Hi Kakashi-kun, my name is Uzuhara Naruto. It's nice to meet you." His face strained to hold the smile as steady as possible, but was _so hard_.

The eight year-old took another step closer to study him critically, scanning Naruto up and down.

"You look like a girl," Kakashi deadpanned.

Naruto gaped, nerves forgotten.

He could feel Minato shaking with silent laughter behind him, and Sakumo grimaced.

Naruto was about to shoot back an insult when he spoke again.

"Are you sure you saved dad's life? You don't look very strong," his doubtful eyes swept up and down again.

_He isn't adorable at all!_ Naruto swore that if he ever, ever, saw his teacher ever again, he was going to burn one of his Icha Icha books.

"Well, you're a little shrimp," Naruto couldn't help but retort indignantly.

"I'm eight years old. Of course I'm short," Kakashi defended. "But if I've calculated correctly, between my dad's height and the rate I've been growing in the last two years, I'm going to be six feet tall when I grow up."

Naruto gaped again. He'd forgotten that Kakashi-sensei was supposed to be one of those maddening prodigies, the little smartass. He was going to burn that precious hard cover, Limited Gold Edition Icha Icha Violence book with the spread-out poster of Jirou and Tsubasa going at it.

"You, on the other hand, are too old to grow any more, except maybe sideways."

Forget it. He was going burn his stupid teacher's entire apartment with his largest katon jutsu.

"I'm not going to be fat!"

"We'll see about that. You look like the hopeless type that neglects to eat vegetables."

"People don't get fat from not eating vegetables! And how am I hopeless just because I don't eat them?"

"So I was right. Vegetable fibers reduce the risk of obesity. You have a higher chance of getting fat than everyone else."

Naruto growled softly. Minato behind him bent over gasping for air, and Sakumo gawked in horror.

This was war, and it was one he refused to lose.

"Kakashi-kun~" Naruto said in a sing-song voice. "You said I look like a girl. Care to elaborate?"

A wicked smirk formed on the boy's smug face, and he began ticking off his fingers without hesitation.

"First of all, you don't look like Minato-niisan."

Naruto glared behind him as Minato raised his hands to indicate his innocence.

"You're short."

"You're skinny."

"And your face is girly."

"Your eyes are too big to be a boy's."

"You don't have any hair on your face."

"Your hair looks too soft."

"You have small hands."

"You–"

"Okay, okay, okay! I get it! (_You're such a liar. My face isn't girly!_) Geez, I'd rather face Gai than this little terror," Naruto grumbled the last part to himself.

"Well, _Kakashi-kun_, I think your idea of a true girl is very _infantile_, _just like you_," Naruto smirked. "But that can be fixed. I just have to reeducate you."

He chuckled evilly. _I'm going to win this hands-down!_

"Naruto…" Minato realized what he was about to do. "Don't–"

Too late.

"_Oiroke no Jutsu!"_

The puff of cloud dissipated to reveal…

"Now this is a true woman, little boy," Naruko licked her lips lustfully and waited eagerly for the reaction.

Kakashi looked stunned at the well-endowed blonde beauty. Naruto had kept her dressed PG-13, but this Naruko was still smoking hot, if she said so herself.

But oddly, Kakashi only stared owlishly at the blonde bombshell without reacting the way he was supposed to. Where was the blood and giggle?

Oh oops, she thought in hindsight, I guess it's too early for puberty.

However, blood did show up at the scene but from a very unexpected source.

"Sakumo-senpai!" Minato exclaimed. "Naruto, change back!"

Blood had dribbled out of Sakumo's nose as soon as Naruko appeared. It wasn't the usual spray of blood since she was only PG-13, but Naruto never guessed this distinguished man was a pervert… Nevermind, he should have expected it from the way Kakashi-sensei turned out.

Kakashi spun around to stare in shock at his father who was dabbing his nose. Naruto groaned inwardly; the kid was going to hate him even more after this. After a few intense moments, Kakashi unfroze to turn back around and broke into a bright smile. "Thank you for saving dad's life, Naruto-neesan! Will you be my friend?"

"Wha…? Wait, I'm not a girl!"

Minato burst into another fit of laughter.

"Naru_-chan_, you've passed Kakashi-kun's test. He does this with every single one of Sakumo-senpai's friends and teammates. He's never been this harsh on someone before, but then again, no one else fought back like you did." Minato tapped his chin. "Now that I think about it, no one's ever passed it as thoroughly as you did either, but I'm not sure why…"

He grinned. "With this, you have his approval to hang around his father."

"T-that was a test?" Naruto asked incredulously.

Minato nodded, stifling his chuckles.

"A test…" Naruto whispered, dumbfounded. "Hatake Kakashi gives the worst tests in the world…"

By now, Sakumo had recovered and was eyeing his guest with an apologetic but pleased smirk.

Kakashi grabbed onto Naruto with small but surprisingly strong hands and pulled him into the house, completely ignoring Minato and Sakumo. "I'll give you a tour of the house, neesan!"

"You brat, I'm not a girl!"

The boy dragged him around each floor, sharing stories about each room, adding a blunt, insensitive comment here and there like he did as an adult in Naruto's Past.

Naruto took back his previous thought. This kid really was adorable.

So this playfulness and curiosity were what Kakashi-sensei lost when Sakumo committed suicide, Naruto smiled humorlessly. Every two sentences was a boast about his father and his upstanding ninja principles.

"My dad is really strong, but he never shows off. I'm going to be like that when I grow up." _I assure you, your adult self is just as humble as your father…_

"When I get a team, I'm going to protect my teammates with my life." _That's the same thing you said during our mission to Wave…_

"Right now, Pakkun is my teammate. He's a really smart ninken. I'll introduce you later." _Oh god, a much younger Pakkun…_

"When I get good enough, I'm going to go on missions with dad." _Now you can. Now you can…_

"I want to learn all the jutsu in the world so I can protect Konoha like my dad." _And you will do both…_

"Dad always says to look underneath the underneath, but that's one of the only rules from the official Shinobi Rules he follows. He's so cool!" _You also taught us to think for ourselves…_

"My dad says it's okay for shinobi to have emotions." _You taught me, Sasuke, and Sakura that too…_

Naruto didn't want to cry, but with every word mini-Kakashi blurted out, he was getting closer to losing it.

"Maybe someday I'll get to teach dad's Shinobi Rules to my own students."

With a pitiful moan, Naruto crumbled to his knees and wrapped his arms tightly around Kakashi's small frame. He dropped his head and sobbed into one of the boy's scrawny shoulders which had been broad and sturdy the last time he had cried into them.

He wasn't strong enough to handle this. If he thought the first few weeks of his stay were agony, he had been naïve. _This_ was agony. Facing evidence of loss was so much more painful than just feeling full of loss. He had been watching from the outside for the last seven months, but now he had stepped inside to see first-hand that he was finally irreversibly alone. What remained of the lonely little boy in his mind screamed as the dam broke, and what teenager that had stayed hopeful fell to drown in the flood.

This wasn't insanity and madness like before. That had been fueled by rage. That was the breaking of what he knew of his person – the structure of his identity. But_ this._ This was the crushing of a splintered heart. His mind could be rebuilt because the pieces were still there, but his heart had been ground into dust, and it was impossible to collect all the grains before they blew away.

And those grains of his heart were already disappearing into thin air.

Within Naruto's shaking arms, Kakashi stood frozen with eyes wide at the funny niisan who had suddenly broken down. The cries were so sad and he wasn't sure what was going on, but he did what his dad did whenever he had a nightmare. He brought his arms around Naruto and held onto him tightly.

"Naruto-niisan, don't cry. I'll protect you with my life too."

The grieving blonde wept even harder. Oh god, this was Kakashi-sensei through and through. No matter what age and no matter what he had suffered, this Kakashi had never stopped being the Kakashi he knew. No, Naruto whimpered, that's not right. Through everything, Kakashi-sensei had never stopped being this Kakashi-kun.

Why? Why did the gods torture him like this, taunting him with proof of his failures? Hadn't he suffered enough? By now, he had gone through every pain in the world, and he was only _nineteen_! Why punish him even more with reminders? The entirety of Konoha was his precious people's – his family's – graves even if only in his mind. Now they had to throw his precious people right in his face.

…

…huh?

W-What was that?

He had just thought to himself that his precious people were being thrown in his face. That their graves were only in his mind. That Kakashi would always be Kakashi. And he was now physically feeling Kakashi comforting him and promising to protect him like he had always done.

Naruto gagged on a strangled laugh. Insight always seemed to come late for him, unlike Kakashi-sensei whose insight was never late regardless of physical tardiness.

He hugged Kakashi tighter, probably suffocating the boy.

Kakashi-sensei was still here in this world, still alive, breathing, and protecting his teammates. He was sure the mother hen Iruka-sensei was here too, just like how Sandaime-Jijii had been here the entire time. He just hadn't made the connection because he had been too hung up on staying away.

These people weren't his precious people, but they were in essence the same.

They weren't cheap imitations; they were the real thing. This Konoha was as real as the one from his Past. The landmarks were here, the people were here, the history was here, and the future was to come. It wasn't empty or lifeless to him like he had convinced himself.

Hadn't he already noticed that when he just arrived? That this Konoha was alive? How had he forgotten?

The dreams and promises he had made in his childhood didn't have to die. His dream had always been to protect; they just had to be molded to fit this new world so that those precious people to come would live in peace. They may not be his, but in essence they were the same. Of course there was 'nature vs. nurture,' but they were the same. His task here was to change the future so that the 'nurture' part would turn out better, so why should he overlap his Past with this present?

The Sandaime-Jijii here was already one of his precious people, and Minato too. Why couldn't the others be? He'd just have a different place in their lives; jealousy could go screw itself.

He would recreate his heart from scratch with new memories, but he didn't have to fear his old memories being replaced. They would be the building blocks for the new because, like he had promised himself on his second day here and repeatedly over the last several months, he was going to protect _this_ village, not the one from his Past. And to protect it to the best of his abilities, he needed to know and understand and love what was inside this Konoha.

What was it that both this Sandaime-Jijii and his Past's Sandaime-Jijii had told him? You had to love to truly protect.

"Kakashi," Naruto gasped between dying sobs. "I'll also protect you. I'll do everything I can to protect you and our home. Please believe in me. You'll believe in me, right?"

"I believe in you," Kakashi said confidently, patting Naruto's 'too soft' hair with an awkward hand.

A weight fell off of Naruto's shoulders and he exhaled a shuddering sigh of relief. Kakashi-sensei believed in him. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you," He didn't know what he was thanking for anymore. "Thank you for _everything_."

Seven months late, he knew this was his true beginning, and like always, Kakashi-sensei had been the one to teach him the life lesson.

Wiping away the last of his tears, Naruto whispered, "Don't tell anyone about this, okay?"

"I promise I won't, Naruto-niisan."

Naruto finally formed a genuine smile from the bottom of his growing heart. "Thank you, Kakashi…-kun."

* * *

**A/N:** I'm smiling too :) What did you think of Kakashi?

Yay! Naruto is recovering, and that's good right? :D

Next chapter: Kushina & Kyuubi, more Sakumo, Haikage?

_June 17, 2012_


	12. Who Am I?

**A/N:** Thank you for your wonderful reviews! They fuel my motivation to write!

Well, about Sakumo & Naruto… I don't know yet whether it'll be one-sided, reciprocated, flirting, one-night stand, friends with benefits, etc… None of them seem too appealing to write at the moment. I think I might avoid a two-sided relationship between them.

Please throw some ideas my way!

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Chapter 12: Who Am I?**

Naruto wasn't sure how long he knelt in that room, petting Kakashi's hair and sniffling, but the boy allowed it while looking bored as ever except for his sharp eyes. When he composed enough of himself to stand, his stiff knees almost gave out on him.

"You should fix your face, Neechan. Now it's splotchy on top of being girly," Kakashi suggested helpfully. Naruto's face flushed, from embarrassment or outrage he wasn't sure, and launched himself at the kid.

"You brat… Take that back." He made an attempt to pinch the little chuunin's cheek. Naruto knew Kakashi was trying to distract him from his issues and huffed as he manhandled the small body under his arm. He was surrounded by perceptive, tactful people; why could he never figure out how to be one too?

He dragged a squirming boy out of the room with him in a tight chokehold but froze mid-step in the doorway. Minato sat cross-legged to the side of the door in deep sleep. That he didn't wake up through the racket they were making was a testament to his exhaustion. Escaping from slackened arms, Kakashi walked over and poked Minato's cheek with a small finger before Naruto could stop him.

Minato's right hand was instantly wrapped around a thin wrist as his left rubbed his abused cheek. "You know, Kakashi-kun, there are a number of more polite ways to wake someone. Why do you always choose the painful ones?" Kakashi smirked in response.

Naruto watched, frozen in place. If Minato was waiting out here, it meant he had heard him bawling his eyes out. Again. Dismayed, he watched Kakashi taunt the older man as a tick formed above the ANBU Captain's eyebrow. At the rate he was embarrassing himself, he was never going to get Minato's respect…

"Sakumo-senpai sent me to tell you dinner will be ready soon," Minato told them.

"Naruto-neechan! You have to try dad's cooking. He's the best chef in the world."

"When did I go back to been your sister?" Naruto protested half-heartedly, listening to Kakashi's feet patter down the hall but weary eyes not leaving Minato's face. However, the taller blonde merely walked over and gave Naruto's hand a light but firm squeeze.

"Sakumo-senpai really is an amazing cook." He smiled, letting go and following Kakashi. "You'll want to get there before Kakashi-kun eats it all," Minato's smile transformed into a grin, "_Naru-chan_."

Naruto's jaw dropped halfway at the name. "Hey, I'm not a girl! Why don't people understand? I'm the most masculine person in this entire world." He jogged after them as he smiled gratefully at Minato's back.

"Right. Just keep telling yourself that, Naru-chan," he managed to say before letting out an 'omph' when Naruto tackled him from behind.

"Did you say something, Minato-kun?" Naruto growled and towed them down the hall with Minato trapped in the same chokehold Kakashi had been in earlier. "Or should I call you Mina-kun? Mina-chan? Or Nato-chan? …No, I have an awesome idea. You'll be Nattō-chan!"

Minato squawked indignantly as he pulled his head out from under the arm and lightly punched Naruto's shoulder.

"Nattō? Fermented soy beans? Really?"

"If I have to be a girl, you're going to be fermented beans. I think it's a fair tradeoff." The smaller blonde elbowed him in the ribs. "I'll be sure to share my thoughts with Kakashi-kun."

"Oh, no way. Get back here!"

Naruto dashed away laughing, chased by a frantic Minato.

When they finally reached the hall outside the kitchen, they were a mess of dust and bruises.

"I'm glad you _children_ made it," Kakashi said blandly. "I hope you two didn't knock out any walls on your way down."

Minato looked away with a light pink dusting his cheeks while Naruto grinned triumphantly

"You see, Kakashi-kun, I had an amazing idea. I think we should call Mina–mmphh!"

"There's no idea," Minato amended quickly, hand stuck firmly over Naruto's mouth with chakra. "He's just being an idiot."

Skeptical, Kakashi opened his mouth to comment but was interrupted by Sakumo's head peering around the doorway. He was about to speak but stopped when he saw the state of the two young men and Naruto struggling against Minato's hand.

Sakumo coughed. "Well, I'm glad you made it… I hope you two didn't hurt yourself on your way down."

Both father and son arched identical eyebrows.

Naruto snorted a laugh behind the hand as Sakumo Number One popped back into the kitchen after telling them dinner was ready and Sakumo Number Two rolled his eyes before following. _Oh god, they're practically the same,_ Naruto thought as he struggled some more.

"Mmmphh!"

"Not until you promise not to tell anyone."

"Nmmwyy." Minato understood the gist of his distorted reply.

"Then I'm not removing my hand."

Naruto narrowed his eyes. He began pushing his own chakra over Minato's hand, down his sides, and wriggled. Nothing happened.

"Mmrrhh?"

Minato laughed at the disgruntled expression. "I'm not ticklish, Naru-chan."

Naruto fumed. He didn't want to lick the hand, and he didn't think it would be smart to attack with a jutsu. He even considered kneeing the crotch, but that was fighting too dirty this situation even for shinobi. So he fell back on releasing killing intent until Minato jerked back.

"Ow!" Naruto clapped his hand over his mouth. "You're supposed to release the chakra before you rip away the hand."

"Stop being a baby. That barely stung." Minato steered them into the kitchen.

The food smelled heavenly.

It tasted just as heavenly.

The man could cook.

And the reason for his skill made Naruto choke.

"My jounin sensei told me girls were more attracted to boys who could cook, so I took secret lessons from the Hyuuga clan for a year," Sakumo told them shamelessly – almost proudly.

"Uhh…did it work?" Naruto asked

Sakumo's charming grin was back. "Oh, it did. And it still does. Every time."

Naruto suppressed the urge to gag. Sakumo's answer was as disturbing as it was fascinating. It almost sounded like the beginnings of a con. Naruto imagined the man could probably be an outstanding con artist with that face and personality.

But no wonder Kakashi-sensei disliked eating out. It wasn't because of his mask or awkwardness in public. It was because his home-cooked food – or memories of his home-cooked food – had always been many times better than any restaurants'.

"Kakashi-kun," Naruto spoke up between bites of simmered mackerel, "can you cook like this too?" _He better not_, Naruto thought darkly as he recalled his teacher making the team eat crappy take-out whenever they visited his apartment.

The boy looked up from his beef and potato stew. "A little. I'll make grilled eel for you. It's my best."

_Kakashi-sensei, you asshole! And to think you were so cute when you were little._

"Can you make karaage?"

"I'm learning that next," Kakashi answered and started on his ebi tempura.

Minato looked at Kakashi oddly. "How come you won't cook for me, but you would for Naruto? You even _offered_."

"Naruto-neechan is special. I'm going to teach her how to cook, too."

The Hunter-nin seethed. "I told you before, I'm not a girl. Minato is girlier than me."

"Not in your life." "Yeah right." "_I beg to differ_."

Naruto glared at Sakumo Number One for his whispered comment and then at the other two for theirs.

"I'll prove it to you then!" Naruto growled. He made to rise from his chair but Minato's harsh grip on his shoulder shoved him back down.

"Naruto, if you're about to do what I think you are, _I will castrate you_."

The smaller blonde's eyes swept from his friend's pink cheeks to Sakumo's smirk to Kakashi's raised eyebrows, and the realization of what exactly he had been about to do hit him hard. He completely snapped out of his indignation towards the three when Sakumo chuckled.

"Maybe you could wait until after dinner," he said and winked.

Naruto flushed bright red. He felt Akashiori's persona smack him upside the head in his mindscape and groaned inwardly at his undisciplined hotheadedness.

"Oh, god…" He dropped his face into his hands. "Can you all forget what just happened?"

"Not this time, Naruto-kun." Sakumo took a languid sip of his tea. "Not this time."

* * *

It was late when the two guests decided it was time to leave.

Kakashi was nodding off on the sofa, and Naruto was teasing the boy mercilessly. The young chuunin had insisted on staying with the adults, arguing that staying awake through the night was a necessary shinobi skill. So the Hunter-nin thought it would be fun to help him out and get back at him for the many 'girly' comments.

As the group stood to say their goodbyes, Sakumo approached Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, I hope you enjoyed yourself tonight," he said, settling his large hand on the blonde's shoulder. He inwardly winced when he felt Naruto flinch but kept his hand firmly in place. He was determined to have the adorable Hunter-nin accept him; if Minato could get through to him, there was no reason he couldn't.

"Y-yeah, I had a great time. Thanks for cooking the awesome food," Naruto replied with false cheer as he tried to discreetly slip his shoulder out from under the heavy weight.

"You are welcome here at any time. Kakashi is quite taken with you, as well."

Naruto smiled even as his fingers started to twitch for a kunai. "He's really a great kid." They looked over at the boy who was probably inadvertently insulting the ANBU.

As if sensing the eyes, their faces turned to the other two. Minato almost growled when he saw a distressed Naruto trying to escape Sakumo's solid grip. He could tell that in less than a minute the Hunter-nin would launch an attack in instinctive self-defense.

Minato stalked over, eyes glinting dangerously. "Sakumo-senpai, thank you for having us," he said, voice smooth and low.

The hairs on the back of Sakumo's neck began to rise at the glint and the animalistic vibes coming from the man next to him. Even Kakashi standing several meters away felt the tension and took a step back.

"The food was superb. You've outdone yourself again," Minato continued pleasantly. "We had a wonderful time, though it seems like Naruto is worn out by the last several days of travel. I should take him home now." Minato extended a chakra-covered hand to Naruto whose eyes were now looking frantically for escape. His eyes snapped to Minato's face at mention of his name, and he immediately grabbed the offered hand.

At the warm contact, the panicking blonde exhaled slowly, and at a gentle tug from Minato, he pulled himself free from Sakumo. His urge to bolt dissipated when a protective arm curled around his shoulders.

"Sakumo-senpai, Kakashi-kun. Goodnight." With a chilly smile from the ANBU-nin, they disappeared in a flash of yellow.

Kakashi snorted and walked out of the room.

"Great job, dad. We'll be lucky if they ever talk to us again."

* * *

Several days later, a beautiful scene was unfolding:

On one fine February afternoon, a pretty, dark-haired girl in her early twenties decorated a road in Konoha. She sat daintily on a bench outside Uchiha Senbei enjoying a box of freshly baked rice crackers. Despite being bundled in the warmest of winter clothing, her cheeks were stained a lovely rosy red and each breath puffed gently into the crisp air. As always, she took pleasure in mingling with the wonders of nature and its charming variety of weather.

Not.

Kimiko was freezing, grumpy, impatient, and just wanted to return to home for a mug of hot chocolate, before curling up in toasty blankets for a nap. Instead, she was freezing her ass off and eating enough rice crackers to last a lifetime at the famous senbei shop while glaring into the bookstore on the other side of the road. No matter how much chakra she layered onto her skin, the cold still somehow seeped in; chakra was always more effective for cooling than heating.

What person in their right mind goes shopping in this awful weather?

And how did Namikaze Minato stand shopping for an entire hour with that person, who was pointing out what seemed like every single book and scroll in that stupid store?

Kimiko's admiration for his incredible patience rose to new heights.

So the situation: Minato had been dragged out by Uzumaki Kushina for a birthday shopping excursion, and because his hobby was reading, she took him to a bookstore. Naruto, needing to figure out what to do with his and his mother's Kyuubi situation, called up Kimiko to study Uzumaki's behavior and habits.

But this was getting ridiculous. She just wanted to storm in there and shunshin Minato to safety from the crazy woman's clutches. And why did she keep touching him? Was this what it would have been like to be raised by her? Scary.

Kimiko scowled at another touch to Minato's wrist.

"Naruto-niichan, why are you pouting?"

"Excuse me?" Kimiko looked up in surprise to see a cute little boy with silver hair. "I think you have the wrong person, dear."

"Niichan, I know it's you."

"I'm sorry, but I'm a girl…" she pointed out the obvious, not sure whether to feel offended or apologetic, "but would you like a senbei?"

"Idiot, cut it out."

Kimiko's brow furrowed disapprovingly. "You shouldn't call anyone an idiot. It's not very nice," she chastised as if he was a toddler.

"But you insult people all the time."

"You're mistaken." She cupped the pitiful, confused boy's cheek with an elegant hand. "Oh, dear! You're freezing! Where are your parents? Here, let me warm you up."

"Naruko-neechan, you messed up your henge on the neck. You forgot to transform the adam's apple."

"What?" Kimiko raised her hand reflexively to feel her throat. "No I didn't…"

Kakashi smirked.

"Shit…" Her throat was covered by a scarf.

Naruto-turned-Naruko-turned-Kimiko frowned. "How did you know? My Oiroke and acting are perfect. Especially my Kimiko-chan."

Kakashi snickered. "Because you almost walked into the men's bathroom earlier."

_Oh...right…must have been when I was in shock from seeing mom punch that store clerk…_

"And that was enough to give me away?" Kimiko asked incredulously.

"No, you also glared at the owner of that grocery store like always."

_Annoying little genius…_ Kimiko's incredulity jumped a notch higher. "You've been spying on me?"

Kakashi arched an eyebrow. "You're doing the same to Kushina-san."

"This is different," Kimiko defended. "Wait, how come I didn't sense you?"

"Because you're incompetent."

"No I'm not," Kimiko reached to pinch his nose. "I have one of the best, if not the best chakra control in Konoha! And you're eight; you have years to go before you reach my level."

"I was much smarter than you from birth." He jumped away to evade the hand.

"Psh, maybe. But I'm eleven years older than you, meaning I have eleven more years of mental development."

"If you can't figure out how you couldn't sense me, your eleven years didn't help very much."

"You little…! What happened to all that talk about being humble and nice?"

"That doesn't apply to you," Kakashi grinned. "Oh, look at the time… I have a mission now. See you next week, Neechan. You better come over to play again." He paused, then smirked. "Dad misses you."

"Wait, Kakashi! Tell me!" Kimiko demanded. Kakashi couldn't help thinking s/he looked and acted like a spoiled little princess.

He turned back around with his hands on his hips and arched an eyebrow (_Again_, Kimiko sniffed in dainty irritation.) "It's because I only study you in passing. You stick out like a sore thumb because you're full-out stalking her. _Idiot_. Bye!"

"…"

'…'

Kyuubi burst out laughing.

Kimiko palmed her face. '…but I _have to_ stalk her…' she lamented.

'_I like that boy better than your sensei,'_ Kyuubi said.

'That's because mini-Kakashi is almost as rude as you,' Kimiko complained as she examined her perfectly trimmed and painted nails. She dug around in her bag for her hand-held mirror and lipstick.

The fox grimaced. _'Kit, you are beginning to take on characteristics of the female gender.'_

'My dear Kyuu,' Kimiko giggled, "This is why I excel at infiltration.'

Kyuubi snorted loudly._ 'This is also why you require over a week to return to your true self after those missions. It only indicates your ineptitude.'_

Kimiko sighed delicately. 'Such a typical male. Uncouth and insensitive. Fine, I'll change back into a man.'

She left and several minutes later, a tall, dark-haired man ran hastily to the shop from down the street. "Excuse me, owner-san," Naruto-turned-Takumi panted, out of breath and heaving large gulps of air into his lungs. "I'm looking for my sister. Did you see a girl with dark hair?"

The shop owner looked at the man disapprovingly. "She just left, young man. She waited here for an hour."

"Is it alright if a wait here?" He bought several senbei, then plopped down on the bench at the woman's sharp nod. He heard her mutter a "Men!" under her breath, accompanied by a shake of her head.

'Kyuu, I'm a guy again. What do we do now?'

'_You will think of a way to stalk Kushina without her realizing the discomfort has any relation to her seal.'_

'And how do we do that?'

'_Think of it for yourself.'_

Takumi mentally flicked his middle finger at the fox.

An idea popped into his mind.

'Kyuu, you know how Sakura used to be extra grumpy sometimes, and she kept complaining about cramps… Do you remember when my mom had her…um…girl stuff?'

Kyuubi howled in unrefined laughter which he normally would never have allowed anyone to see. _''Girl stuff,' kit?'_

Takumi growled, 'Stop laughing at me! I'm being serious here.'

'_Girl stuff!'_ the demon fox repeated between shallow breaths. _'I have never heard it called that. But then again, I have never been sealed inside an idiotic male vessel.'_

'Fine, then…the monthly things, for babies…'

Kyuubi laughed even harder.

The man groaned. 'Kyuu! If you know what I'm talking about, just tell me!'

The laughs slowed down to gasps, but he still couldn't gather enough air to answer.

'You could…um…tell when she had them, right?' Takumi turned slightly green.

The fox forced back another round of laughter with the control he had honed after centuries of existence.

'_Kit, it's called menstruation, and they are not always regular. There is no way for me to know her exact dates.'_

'Oh…' Takumi looked dumbfounded for a moment. 'Then what do we do?'

'Well, you could track her bathroom breaks.' Kyuubi teased.

He turned green once again.

'C-could we ask Minato about when she goes to the bathroom? Like if she looks grumpy or something.'

Kyuubi couldn't help but laugh again. _'Idiot, you come up with the most outrageous ideas. What makes you think he would notice?'_

'Duh, because he's really perceptive. He notices everything.'

'_But not anything related to the female gender,'_ the giant fox snorted. _'Do you truly believe he is noticing anything aside from the books in that store right now?'_

'He can't miss that mom's been assaulting him for an hour.'

'_Kit…that isn't assaulting. That is what humans call flirting.'_

Takumi's eyebrows rose high on his forehead. 'Ehhh? Flirting? _That_? No way… We would have recognized flirting right away.'

'_Which shows how dense you both are about women.'_ Kyuubi shook his head. _'He has not yet realized that Kushina has loved him for years. Similarly, you never noticed Hyuuga Hinata's advances either.'_

"What?" The man yelped out loud. "You're lying."

He shrunk down when the shop owner gave him an odd look.

'For real? When?' He furrowed his brow to recall any hint of Kyuubi's claim but couldn't remember Hinata ever acting out of the ordinary.

Kyuubi watched the boy completely overlook every single obvious sign and Namikaze shake off Kushina's hand for the nth time in favor of reaching for a scroll.

_Like father like son,_ he thought to himself with a sigh. _Idiots, the both of them._

* * *

Takumi slouched on the bench for another twenty minutes, thinking hard about how to fix his problem.

'_Kit, just…stop. You are going to overheat your little brain if you continue thinking. We will just follow her every so often until the connection is broken.'_

'_Perhaps immediately after she finishes eating at Ichiraku,' _Kyuubi chuckled evilly, his latent malice rising to the forefront of his mind.

'Kyuu, no! You can't do that to her,' Takumi looked at him in horror. 'You'll ruin the Food of Gods!'

Kyuubi snarled._ 'Do you know how much I suffer from your 'Food of Gods'? Every single time you guzzle that disgusting thing, your mindscape becomes saturated with its stink. I have put up with it for over thirty years,'_ the fox exclaimed. _'Do it…or else I will ruin ramen for you.'_

'What about just sometimes?' Takumi haggled.

At Kyuubi's glare of imminent doom, he amended his offer meekly. 'How about every other time…?'

'That_ is an excellent offer. Perhaps your brain isn't so miniscule after all,'_ the demon fox said contentedly. _'I accept.'_

* * *

"Sooo, how was shopping?" Naruto asked casually.

Minato groaned. "It took us two hours. I can stand one hour, but two is over the top."

The two elite Black Ops shinobi were huddled against Konoha's West Gate in the freezing night, their blanket doing little to ward off the cold. It was their fourth horrid night of gate duty. Naruto wanted to strangle Sandaime-Jijii so badly that his hands had almost closed around his tempting neck during their Kage Kaigi the day before.

"But Kushina got me two incredibly rare ninjutsu scrolls. One is on a lightning jutsu and the other is on a water jutsu. I want to show you when we manage to wake up tomorrow."

"Awesome, thanks!" Naruto wasn't sure why, but he had the urge to rip those scrolls into shreds.

"Oh, you haven't met Kushina yet," Minato said a bit awkwardly, remembering what happened before. "You should meet her…she's a great person."

Naruto blanched.

"Uhh…I'm really not good with girls. You see, I have severe girl phobia. I also radiate anti-girl pheromones that make them plot my demise." Naruto quickly fabricated an excuse. "Maybe sometime later…um…when I reach the end of puberty…and my bad hormones calm down…"

"Naruto…I really doubt that." Minato looked at strangely but wrote it off as one of Uzuhara Naruto's eccentric quirks. "I'll take you to meet her tomorrow."

"No! The last three times I hung out with girls, they punched my face into a wall. I also got a paperweight and a chair thrown at me." Naruto rubbed the phantom pain in his cheek where both Tsunade-Babaa and Sakura-chan's fists had broken his jaw.

Minato burst into laughter and mentally cringed at how Kushina had punched someone just earlier that day. Naruto jabbed his elbow into Minato's side. "This isn't a laughing matter! The only reason my nose isn't crooked and my jaw isn't hanging is because of my abnormal healing."

"Alright, alright," the older blonde shook his head. "Some other time then."

They fell silent, being much more interested in huddling closer to retain as much heat between them as possible. Their bodies touched from shoulder to knee, and Naruto had relinquished his pride just this once to tuck the lower half of his legs under Minato's.

Time seemed to crawl.

Naruto took a deep breath.

"Minato…" He began hesitantly. "I have something I want to tell you."

The ANBU-nin jerked his head towards the other blonde, almost brushing his nose against a cheek.

"You see…well, I…I think of you as a really great friend, and…" Naruto trailed off nervously. Warmth filled Minato at those words, surprised that the previously skittish blonde admitted it out loud after denying it for so long. He had only called him his precious person once during insanity in Rain. His curiosity peeked as Naruto shifted closer as if to hide from the trepidation which he could imagine was saturating his mindscape.

"I want to tell you before I regret not telling you what I want to tell you…" The Hunter-nin's speech was jumbled, evidence that his internal anxiety was stronger than his outward appearance and actions which already showed more discomfort than Minato had ever seen from the smaller blonde. It was actually quite endearing, Minato thought fondly, pressing Naruto lightly through the shoulder with a bit of his chakra which always helped to calm him.

It must have worked because Naruto turned his face, determination burning brightly in his azure eyes, clearly visible even under the dim lamp. Minato stiffened, then relaxed when he felt Naruto's chakra spread around the air to cocoon them in a one-way soundproof barrier, an impressive feat only possible for masters of chakra control. He wasn't sure if even the Hokage could create one.

"Minato, I want to tell you a bit about myself and my work."

Minato's eyes widened in surprise. "You don't have to–"

"No, I want to. I trust you. I also got Sandaime-Jijii's permission, so don't stop me," Naruto said firmly.

"You know how Aka told you our work has something to do with international relations?" He waited for the ANBU-nin's small nod of acknowledgement. "It runs a little deeper than just that. I'm working on building solid alliances between nations and villages to protect Konoha for at least the next five years – hopefully longer. The reason for my job is a war that's approaching quickly." Minato sucked in a sharp breath.

"You know the increase in skirmishes right? That's going to lead up to war in a few years. Probably two. I've been trying to reduce the frequency along Fire borders and a few of the nations that have allied with us. My hope is to reduce the casualties and collateral damage. It's working, but it's slow. That's what my long-term mission was for. We have all of Waterfall, minor shinobi villages scattered around the west, and the upper half of River."

Naruto waited for Minato to digest the information. "I can see it now," Minato said slowly. "It's Earth Country, isn't it?"

Naruto nodded. "We pretty much have Sand as an ally as long as the Sandaime Kazekage stays in office. Sakumo-senpai is mostly in charge of maintaining that now." Minato frowned slightly.

"Will Konoha be ready for this war?"

"Have you noticed anything different in the training and education programs for the regular shinobi force? We've advanced the curriculum and restructured the training for chuunin and jounin. First and foremost is defense; we want our shinobi to have the skills to protect themselves and the village."

Respect for the Hunter-nin grew – for his inner strength, for his competence, for his leadership, for his devotion.

"Minato…I want to ask for your assistance," Naruto's confidence dipped. "You're one of the most capable and trusted shinobi in Konoha. Your mind and your skills set you above everyone in this village. And your leadership and loyalty are second to none. Well, except maybe the Hokage. Anyway, you'd be a valuable addition to the team."

Minato stared in shock at the younger blonde who was staring back apprehensively, biting his lower lip while waiting for the ANBU-nin's reaction. When Naruto had asked him to listen, he hadn't foreseen a war looming on the horizon or an invitation to join the team leading the pre-war effort. Perhaps he had known something major was happening amongst the shinobi countries but not to this degree.

He stared for several more moments until he noticed red staining Naruto's lip. _Blood._ The Hunter-nin had unknowingly punctured the skin and was continuing to deepen the wound even now. Taking pity on his friend, Minato raised a finger to gently nudge the abused lip from between the pointed teeth, releasing a low hum of disapproval as he did so.

"Naruto, you're bleeding," Minato explained softly when he saw the surprised daze on the other's face. He wiped away the liquid crimson with his thumb before pulling away his hand.

"O-Oh," Naruto stuttered, a blush blooming on his cheeks. "Thanks."

Minato chuckled.

"Thank you for the invitation. I'm flattered you think so highly of me. It would be an honor to lend whatever abilities and strengths I have to protect Konoha."

Naruto let out a sigh of relief.

"Did you really expect me to refuse?"

"There was a tiny, tiny possibility," the younger blonde replied guiltily and laid his cheek on his knee.

"Dummy, of course I wouldn't refuse. Erase all your doubts about me alright, Naru-chan?"

He nodded, lifting remorseful eyes to Minato. "Sorry. I will," he whispered.

* * *

When March rolled in, the frequency of skirmishes along various borders had increased again. Haikage was both frustrated and perplexed by the catalysts for the conflict because he couldn't pinpoint any specific source; each incident raised more questions on who was pulling the strings in the shadows. It was an unseen battle between him and those hidden players, both parties moving in the dark but his enemies were on the offensive while he could only defend blindly.

The peculiar financial movements in Kusa were too irregular to track, and any solid trail he picked up always led to a dead end where it either disappeared or split off in too many directions at once. He had shadow clones mingling in Kusa, Earth Country and Ame borders, and scattered throughout Earth Country. He also had several acting as lookouts at the Kannabi Bridge which had been a vital point in Iwa's strength in the Past. So far, the traffic had been consistent, but he needed to get his hands on Iwa's financial history sometime soon, especially their expense records.

Haikage leaned back in the Hokage lounge's cushy sofa, tempted to fall asleep right there. Alone in the lounge, he had taken off his pitch black mask which sat on the table across the room, empty eyeholes staring hauntingly up at the ceiling. Akashiori's spiral mask sat next to it and beside that was Aka's – Uzuhara Naruto's – blood red mask.

As the Kage Kaigi grew in size, it became necessary for all of his personas to attend the meetings. When it was just him and the Sandaime, Haikage was enough. When Sakumo had been recruited as the Ambassador to Suna, Akashiori's participation became necessary as the Hokage's secret Second-in-Command. Then with the addition of Nara Shikaku for Strategy, Aka joined to fill the position for Espionage. Finally, Uzuhara Naruto's unmasked identity became partially involved when Yamanaka Inokazu joined for Intelligence and Minato for ANBU Representative and Military Strategy.

Much of the team was young. Shikaku and all of Naruto's personas were only nineteen years of age, and Minato had turned twenty just several weeks ago, but they made up an effective team of people that the Narutos knew how to work with. Inokazu and he had met on several occasions since his arrival in this time, he had worked with Shikaku during the Fourth Shinobi World War, he had seen Sakumo at work in Suna, and Minato was Minato.

However, having different personas related to different people made his work more difficult. He had two clones during each meeting which he couldn't confer with until afterwards when he dispelled them. Both clones thought and acted exactly like the original, yet they were independent of each other, able to make their own deductions from their position and form ideas with a different perspective in mind. Having three of him making decisions together with three interpretations of the meetings would be incredibly useful, but he first had to determine whether revealing himself would disrupt the dynamics of the team or cause his teammates to lose their trust in him.

Regardless of whatever he did, his secrets were piling on, and Haikage knew the end would be worse the longer he held back. It wouldn't be long before everything exploded in his face, and his personas were afraid of losing Minato's trust above all.

That aside, he needed to decide whether to be Haikage or Akashiori or Aka for the meeting in twenty minutes.

"Haikage-kun, what is troubling you?"

Haikage slowly turned his head to the Sandaime who walked in without revealing his chakra signature. "Am I so obvious?"

"To me, yes, and perhaps to Minato-kun, but not to others."

"Sandaime-sama, I am wondering what to do with myself," Haikage rubbed his temples with the tips of his fingers.

"First of all, you are to call me Hiruzen. As I have said many times before, we are on equal footing while you are Haikage. Should I threaten you to call me by my given name?" Sarutobi joked lightly.

"Ugh. Yes, yes. Very well," Haikage sighed a chuckle. "Hiruzen, I am in need of your wisdom. What am I to do with my various personas during the Kaigi? The situation will become increasingly precarious as I wait longer, but I dread the consequences of revealing myself after gaining their trust."

"Has your tenant offered his thoughts?"

Haikage tilted his head to the side, smiling in black humor.

"Although he is now mostly a protective and amiable partner, Kyuubi will never stop being cynical and callous. He advised me to eliminate 'the minions' if any problems arise. His charming words were, 'There is an endless supply of ants in the world. One or two squashed will not matter in the long run.'"

Sarutobi smiled almost fondly at the unexpectedly charismatic demon fox. "Yes…quite the friendly fellow, I imagine."

Haikage tossed his head back for a loud laugh. "Friendly is pushing it."

Once they quieted, Sarutobi continued. "Haikage-kun, perhaps you should place more faith in your teammates and advisors. You chose them personally out of all Konoha shinobi because you trust their sound judgment and open-minded approach."

"…Perhaps," Haikage echoed.

"You have already made your decision, Haikage-kun, but you have hidden it behind worries and fears. Bring it forth. I am certain you are capable of making the best of any situation."

Haikage sighed, rising to his feet to take even steps to his masks. "Hiruzen, I will be Akashiori for this meeting. Prepare yourself for possible discord; two will become one tonight."

* * *

The Kage Kaigi was progressing smoothly as usual. Each member reported his findings, followed by proposals and discussions on the conceivable chain of events to any action taken.

While Minato listened to the Haikage presenting his views on the mysterious lack of paper trails in Kusa, he watched Aka and Akashiori curiously.

Walking into his first Kage Kaigi, he had been surprised to see Akashiori sitting to the Hokage's left, flipping through a stack of papers, occasionally pulling out a sheet to set haphazardly in front of the leader of Konoha. He was surprised again when Sakumo-senpai, Yamanaka-san, and Shikaku stepped into the room and immediately welcomed the ANBU into the team. Next, a masked Aka stepped in and set his hand lightly on his shoulder in another warm welcome.

The five had joined the Hokage and Akashiori in chairs prepared around the circular table, but oddly the meeting didn't start; one chair remained empty.

When the door opened, he had found himself surprised a third time at seeing Haikage-sama stride in. As his imposing presence filled the room, Minato noticed the rest of the men like himself had straightened their backs unconsciously.

The man in black stood behind his chair to the Hokage's right, sweeping his shadowed eyes around the table.

"Team." His low but powerful voice had washed over them, easily commandeering the room. Although the Haikage still seemed to leak killing intent as he did when they met in the forest many months ago, the Haikage now was less ominous and more forthcoming. He had received the men with obvious pride, then addressed Minato with gratitude. Somehow, the tone by itself had elevated their confidence in their abilities and the success of their mission.

This was his fifth meeting, and half of his mind drifted to the two Hunter-nin. Aka sat next to him while Akashiori, or Akamaki as he was referred to here, sat several seats away. Even with their faces covered by masks, Minato felt like something was bothering both of them. Maybe problems with the Hunter-nin Corps?

No one else seemed to notice the tension in their shoulders.

As the meeting neared its end, he noticed Aka's fist clenched tightly under the table. Minato could clearly see that he was nervous. If they hadn't been in the current setting, he would have reached out to the Hunter-nin to offer his support.

"There is one last order of business before we adjourn this session of Kage Kaigi," the Haikage looked to the two masked men.

Akashiori and Aka stood from their seats.

"Team, we have come to a decision to entrust you with a piece of information known to very few," Akashiori began gruffly.

"It was kept secret for purposes of strategic maneuvering through the shinobi countries, but we feel there is no reason to hide in this room," Aka continued.

"We apologize for the ruse and sincerely hope you will not think less of us," Akashiori finished.

Then, Aka disappeared in a silent wisp of cloud.

Three pairs of eyes widened simultaneously as they understood the message.

"As you see, Aka and I are one," Akashiori said, his voice no longer gruff. "Please forgive me."

The Hunter-nin raised his hands slowly to remove his spiral mask and cloth hiding his hair. Who the team saw was a young man with bright blond hair and unwavering, sky-blue eyes.

_Naruto._

"Uzuhara-kun?" Inokazu said softly in shock. "You are Akamaki…Hokage-sama's Second-in-Command?"

Naruto dipped his head in acknowledgement. "I am, but my true codename is Akashiori. Akamaki is my alias in the field."

"Troublesome," Shikaku huffed and leaned back. "I don't care; be whomever you want. You're still the same person, right?"

"Yes." Naruto smiled gratefully.

The youngest blonde looked over at Minato, eyes pleading for forgiveness at the deceit.

At first, Minato formed a small smile, but his eyes narrowed when he noticed Sakumo's lack of surprise. _Sakumo-senpai knew this entire time. _He lips twitched downwards.

He felt betrayal leak little by little into his mind and heart. It was irrational and unreasonable and there were no doubt valid reasons – Suna – for Sakumo knowing. Minato understood, but he couldn't help but feel the negative emotions bubbling up. Naruto and he had been close since the Hunter-nin appeared in the village eight months ago. Regardless of the many mysteries of Naruto still unrevealed, they had opened up to each other, building what he thought was unshakable trust.

But now, he found there was someone else in the village Naruto trusted more than him. And from Sakumo-senpai's expression, the man knew it. Minato recognized that it was stupid to feel this way.

Maybe it was the older man's expression that was affecting him. The rational part of his mind saw reason, but…

It stung. A lot.

He wanted so badly to violently swipe off that little, almost-smug smile dancing on Hatake's face.

Minato couldn't understand. _Why am I thinking so irrationally? And angrily?_

Naruto's heart sank at Minato's displeased expression. _No!_ The one person he didn't want to lose was looking at him like an enemy. That was undeniably betrayal on his friend's face, and it was himself that had placed it there. There was no one to blame but himself; he was the one who had messed up…

_Falling into depression is a waste of energy,_ he told himself firmly.

Naruto instantly wiped all expression from his face; he was back to the true Akashiori.

"In future meetings, I will still be appearing as both Akashiori and Aka," he said briskly, wanting to escape the room. "My shadow clones are independent of each other with different duties, functions, and minds. I hope you will treat them as individuals rather than two of me. Again, I sincerely apologize and hope you will still accept me as a colleague."

Akashiori bowed deeply before winking out of the room.

* * *

**A/N:** Can you all guess the obvious reason for Minato's reaction? ;) And did you like the little bits of sweetness?

Karaage = bite-sized pieces of deep-fried chicken

Ebi Tempura = deep-fried shrimp in batter

You know…the more I read and write MinaNaru or see anything related to Minato, the _angrier_ I get at Kishimoto for killing him off… Does anyone else feel this way? Because I don't want to be alone in this irrational anger…

Next chapter: What happens to Naruto? Enter Jiraiya. Hopefully, the plot will move forward.

_June 24, 2012_


	13. Silky Smooth Skin

**A/N – July 3rd:** My roommate and I had a potluck tonight with friends (because there's no work tomorrow for the 4th of July holiday!), and throughout the evening I had four glasses of white wine sangria, two beers, two shots of tequila, and a Long Island Ice Tea. That's four different types of liquor, two different wines, and two different beers. Thank god for my high alcohol tolerance because otherwise I'd be completely wasted. (I'm only 5 feet tall)

Still, this means I'm drunk as I write the second half of this :P

**A/N – July 4th:** Forgive me everyone, I'm too hung over to edit this much. Once this is posted, I'm crawling back to bed and hibernating the pain away…

To teens: alcohol may seem like fun, but it can be extremely, horribly painful in the morning. To those in college: don't mix different types of alcohol because it only makes the pain worse. Urghhhh…

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Dear readers:** If you don't like this pairing, please don't read it or tell me you dislike it. I don't go around sharing my hate for everything that's not my cup of tea, and I don't see the point in doing so**. I put up warnings for this exact reason.**

* * *

**Chapter 13: Silky Smooth Skin**

"Request denied."

"What! Jijii, pleeeaase."

"Naruto, you cannot leave the village each time you have a disagreement with Minato-kun," Sarutobi reprimanded absently, eyes glued to the document in front of him.

"That's not why I'm requesting this mission," Naruto protested.

"Oh?" The Hokage scribbled a sloppy signature.

"I just–"

"Mmhmm."

"Jijii! Are you listening to me?"

"Can you honestly say is it not because of Minato-kun?" Sarutobi muttered.

The blonde grimaced. "I need to get Iwa's financial data."

Sarutobi looked up flatly. "You know best that the financial statements will not be released until the end of March. I will not allow you to leave for this mission until the beginning of April."

"I also need to check out the Dream Village for their combat henge techniques."

"You also know that there is no need to collect combat jutsu for another year. You said so yourself."

The Hunter-nin quickly gave his best puppy-eye look.

"What if I do half of your paperwork for a month? Or if I tell you what happens in Icha Icha Tactics?"

Sarutobi's mouth tightened regretfully. "Regardless of what you offer, I will not allow you to leave the village unless there is a valid reason. Do not forget, you already have a mission here."

"Tch, foiled," Naruto grumbled under his breath.

"However, I have a treat for you, gaki." Sarutobi leaned back and took a drag from his pipe. "Your Spring Shinobi Assessment is two days from now."

Naruto paled. "That's a treat? No way, I'm definitely getting out of this village."

"I suspect you will be very happy about the Combat Assessment portion."

The blonde perked up. "Do I get to beat up Tiger?"

Sarutobe looked mildly amused. "No, better. However, you will have to be in the village to find out who it is."

"It's not Minato, right?"

"_No_." The elder man exhaled in exasperation. "However, I expect you to have resolved your differences by then. Now, leave me to my work."

"But…"

Sarutobi opened his mouth but closed it without uttering a word. A thoughtful expression crossed his face. He squashed the devious urge to hunch his shoulders and rub his hands conspiratorially.

Instead, he schooled his face into a somewhat peculiar grandfatherly smile.

Oblivious, Naruto continued talking.

Sarutobi's hand inched forward.

An instant later, a fist-sized paperweight smacked straight into the blonde's unsuspecting face.

"Ow!" Naruto yelped from the floor, clutching his nose. "Crazy old man! What the hell was that for?"

"Bull's-eye." Impish satisfaction adorned the wise face of Konohagakure's great leader. "It seems decades of paperwork have yet to ruin me."

"#&%$!"

* * *

Whispers spread through the ANBU Headquarters. The words "Fujiwara Transportation Corporation", "killed", and "ownership" were most prominent among them.

Minato stalked through the halls, catching snippets of conversations. He shook his head and tried to ignore them because thinking about the topic of those whispers led to thoughts of a particular person. He also didn't need to listen since he already knew the details.

After the Kage Kaigi, Akashiori had executed the final phase in the takeover of Fujiwara Transportation Corporation – one which was achieved through assassination rather than the typical financial acquisition.

Fujiwara Transport controlled over half of transportation services of Konoha. Much of the village's major imported commodities such as copper and sugar were shipped on Fujiwara routes by Fujiwara transportation units. Its network spanned over much of Fire Country, making the company a major asset of Konoha but also a major threat.

The company amassed sizeable yearly revenue, but the problem was that not all was from legal markets. Under the current Fujiwara leader, the company had grown rapidly but it had also fallen under corruption; their services had expanded into smuggling drugs and other illegal goods. While the Hokage employed shinobi to investigate, the Fujiwara clan also employed shinobi to escape detection.

Months ago, Akashiori had infiltrated the company to gather information and evidence. During his investigation, he found that the Fujiwara and Nara clans were very closely related by blood. Armed with this information, he planted doubts and false evidence between the owner of the company and his heir which had escalated to internal conflict between the two men in a struggle for control of the company.

Finally, the night before, Akashiori had staged a situation which caused the Fujiwara head to murder his own son. The father had been arrested for life, and control of the company was passed to the Nara clan without any suspicion on the acquirer. With this development, Shikaku could gradually clean up the business, greatly reduce illegal trafficking in Fire Country, and utilize trade routes reliably in war.

Minato shook his head again, this time in mild disbelief. That was all Akashiori's idea. _Naruto's_ idea. And it had been planned months before Shikaku had been recruited. It had been completely executed by him alone, and the legalities were settled by him alone as well.

There was so much more to Naruto than what anyone saw at first sight, or any sight for that matter.

This was the point where Minato had stumbled. He had become accustomed to being Naruto's only friend, but now there was Hatake (he couldn't help but now refer to him with disrespect) who had worn that almost haughty expression at knowing what he didn't. Minato knew 'haughty' was an exaggeration and information was released on a need-to-know basis, but he couldn't help feeling the same as he did in Suna: left out. Except this time Hatake's reaction made the feeling seem personal.

_And irrational,_ Minato reminded himself.

He wasn't usually an irrational man. He could probably count the number of occasions he had been irrational in his life on his two hands and could back up that claim with his exceptional memory. Minato clenched those hands as the tempting image of Hatake with a bloody nose floated forward in his thoughts. For reasons unknown, he felt angry and betrayed.

The blonde took a guess that the Shinobi Rules were established for situations like this, and though he didn't know it, he was right on the money.

Rule Number 25: A shinobi must never show emotion.

A flicker of yellow in rapid movement drew his eyes to his right. What he saw was the subject of his thoughts fast-walking through ANBU shinobi around the cafeteria, heading right toward the hallway the ANBU Captain had just exited. Naruto looked almost comically distressed to be navigating the ANBU Headquarters alone.

Naruto paused in surprise when his gaze connected with Minato's, his stormy azure eyes immediately flickering side to side for escape before hardening. They stopped in front of each other to meet two pairs of defiant eyes and stood still for several moments. In their appraisal, neither noticed the shinobi around them quiet to watch them curiously.

As if in silent agreement, both nodded sharply and spoke in unison.

"Let's fight this out."

Their soft voices carried across the apprehensive crowd. The ANBU knew of the prodigious Captain's prowess, and they had all heard about Uzuhara's fight against Jackal. Many had also heard about what had happened to ANBU Training Ground 4 during Uzuhara's Combat Assessment. Now these two shinobi fiends looked as if they wanted to pound each other into the dirt, and that just made the entire situation ten times more frightening.

Minato yanked Naruto to him by his waist and Hiraishin-ed them to Training Ground 4. They jumped apart to opposite sides of the newly reconstructed terrain.

"Now that I can fight as both Naruto and Akamaki, let's see how you fare against both."

Minato gave a rare, wicked smirk. "Don't think for a moment that I'm not prepared to face you both, Naru-chan. I've seen and studied both of your fighting styles very closely."

Naruto snorted and matched the smirk. "You've only seen two of Akamaki's fights firsthand, and you haven't seen us together. Combined, we're a clash of styles which makes us different from before."

"Then I look forward to the challenge."

They sank into respective fighting stances.

"Loser apologizes."

"You're on."

ANBU Captain and Hunter-nin blurred into action.

* * *

BOOM

The ANBU Headquarter compound shuddered. The shinobi in the vicinity froze.

WHOOSH

It shuddered again. Everyone waited for the broadcast for red alert.

CRASH

None came. The ANBU as a whole sighed in relief but winced as another explosion shook the building. The shinobi migrated to the source of the sounds and were delighted to see two battered blondes standing in the half demolished training field: uprooted trees, fractured boulders, upturned and scorched ground.

"And it's only been five minutes," someone muttered.

"_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

The audience waited for copies of Uzuhara to appear, but oddly, he remained alone.

Minato tensed, immediately spreading his senses in all directions. He'd never seen Naruto perform this sequence and guessed it was Akashiori's. Suddenly, the ground glowed red, and his body was sinking into the ground. Only instinct saved him from being engulfed by molten rock. He glanced sharply over at Naruto who was also standing on the liquid ground by chakra under his feet.

"A little trick I created while my clones and I were playing with fire." Naruto bounced gleefully. "This makes it more fun, doesn't it?"

He bent down and covered his hand in chakra before scooping a glob of molten rock and flinging it at the ANBU-nin.

"What the…" Minato dodged the incoming projectile which toppled a tree behind him.

Minato retaliated with his own glob which hit Naruto's side, burning deeply into his flesh. Then Minato followed the throw with a bullet of water which smashed into the Hunter-nin's stomach, effectively injuring the blonde and cooling the burn with one attack.

"First blood is mine, Naru-chan."

Clutching his burn, Naruto scowled.

Extending chakra out from his hands, Naruto shoveled into the soft ground and hoisted a human-sized orb. Minato's eyes widened in horror along with those of all the shinobi watching as the red, molten globe was launched in his direction. He barely leapt out of the way, flipping into the air in a somersault before diving to roll on his chakra-covered back to avoid a second, even larger globe.

The first globe splashed the edge of the pond which sizzled angrily, and the other barreled into trees, adding another five-thousand square feet to the training ground field.

"Hokage-sama and the ANBU Commander are going to chew them out for this," Lion whispered to Leopard. "This'll take years to reconstruct without Mokuton…"

Their attention was captured again when the ANBU Captain leapt to the unaffected portion of the clearing and shouted:

_"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"_

A toad the size of a small house appeared with a puff of cloud.

"Gamajyou, I need your help to harden the ground. Ready?"

"That's the kid Chief was laughing about?" Gamajyou grumbled loudly. "Hmph, let's knock the brat down a few notches."

"_Suiton: Teppoudama (Gunshot)!"_

A series of gigantic cannonballs of water shot out of the toad's mouth to cover the melted ground.

Naruto pouted and pulled out a handful of senbon. "Minato! You party-pooper! We didn't get any snow this year, so I thought we could have a lava-ball fight!"

Everyone sweatdropped…

Naruto jumped to avoid a gigantic watery cannonball and threw a flurry of senbon at the toad. Minato leapt to deflect them, but a multitude of shadow clones appeared behind the two to fling more from all directions. With his speed, the older blonde managed to deflect all, but three slipped through his guard, hitting three major tenketsu points on Gamajyou's neck, stomach, and spine. The toad crumbled mid-attack and vanished with a puff.

"Not merely with humans – I have great knowledge of toad anatomy as well." Naruto in his Akashiori persona dashed towards Minato. "Worry not, no long-term damage was inflicted."

Minato met the Hunter-nin in the middle of the hardened ground, unsheathing his katana to block Akashiori's wakizashi in a loud clang of metal and sparks. Both blondes leapt backwards only to charge at each other again, engaging in a taijutsu-kenjutsu match.

The audience could barely keep up with the two shinobi blurring in and out around the field. They could only hear the sharp sound of metal on metal until Uzuhara jumped back and refrained from charging again. Blood flowed generously from a slash on his arm.

"Second blood," Minato taunted. "Have you been shirking training?"

The Hunter-nin snarled at Minato, as well as at his own carelessness. He leapt forward, blood flying in a trail behind him, to drop into one of the strangest fighting styles the surrounding ANBU had ever seen. It was much slower than the previous style but more fluid. The moves were a smooth mix of offensive and defensive which slipped easily around the Captain's offensive attacks. Those defensive movements then transitioned almost inconceivably into offensive attacks which somehow were placed exactly where the larger blonde appeared.

Slash marks appeared on Minato's body each time he closed in to deliver a hit on Naruto.

Someone gasped, "His eyes are closed!"

And they were indeed closed. Naruto smirked at the exclamation as he concentrated on the chakra movements of his opponent rather than the visual. The style was an original mix of Uzumaki Naruto's unpredictable, offensive wakizashi taijutsu, Akashiori's defensive steady-palm taijutsu, and Rock Lee's Drunken Fist. It was his ultimate fighting style which had beaten Maito Gai hands down.

After ten minutes of exchanging blows, Minato was finally able to halt Naruto's blade with his own.

Eyes flying open, the Hunter-nin instantly lowered his stance for greater stability. Instead of jumping back, he pressed his body forward under Minato's arms and jabbed his elbow into his gut.

Minato twisted to his side, allowing circular motion to lessen the impact, then spun around and behind the smaller blonde. Once in position, he whipped out a kunai and slashed Naruto in the back before jumping away. Naruto grunted, catching himself with a shaky hand as he stumbled forward.

Painfully straightening his injured spine, he passed his short sword into his left hand and formed one-handed seals with his right.

"_Fuuton: Shinkougyoku (Vacuum Sphere)!"_

A barrage of bullet-like wind pelted towards Minato. Naruto then snapped his fingers and whispered inaudibly.

"_Houfuku no Honoo* (Flames of Retribution)."_

Each bullet was engulfed in Hunter-nin Black Fire as it flew at the ANBU Captain, gaining speed from the added power of the fire.

With an abrupt shout of surprise, Minato threw one of his three-pronged Hiraishin kunai to the side and activated the seal before it even landed on the ground. However, before he had fully teleported himself, the black flames of one bullet licked his thigh.

When Minato reappeared in mid-air, the fire had spread, feeding greedily on flesh and fabric with a mind of its own. Like the older blonde had done, Naruto who had returned to his Uzuhara persona launched water at his friend to kill the fire, but unlike the older blonde, Naruto's water attack was like a waterfall dumped over the Captain, drenching him from head to toe.

He stuck his tongue out at Minato. "That was for payback for ruining my uniform, idiot!"

Scattered murmurs spread through the crowd. While very few shinobi of regular or ANBU force ever came across a Hunter-nin on a mission, there were rumors and speculations about the Hunter-nin Black Fire which was said to be the organization's signature technique. Though several had tried to recreate it, no one outside of the Hunter-nin Corps knew how to perform the jutsu, and throughout the decades of its supposed existence, not a single Hunter-nin had betrayed the well-guarded secret.

But just a moment ago, Uzuhara Naruto had performed what looked like the rumored Black Fire. No one could attest to its authenticity, but Uzuhara's technique piqued the interests of those who knew of the rumors.

Among the bystanders, Tiger opened his mouth to reveal Uzuhara's secret but was stopped by Jaguar's killing intent from next to him.

"Don't," was all Jaguar said sharply, snapping this teammate's jaw shut with a forceful hand beneath his chin. Tiger growled under his breath but stayed silent when the stoic man's hand retreated.

On the field Minato fumed, tugging at his soaked pouch. "Naruto! That was uncalled for! My water jutsu only splashed you."

"But yours hurt! Mine only got you wet," Naruto retorted, crossing his arms defensively. "You should have reinforced your pouch, Seal Master-saaaan– "

Naruto's taunt was abruptly cut off with an undignified squawk as a Hiraishin kunai shot at his face, followed by Minato's sudden flash of yellow.

"_Kawarimi!"_

Minato's chop to the neck connected for a moment, but Naruto performed a switch with a shadow clone in mid-hit, the Naruto clone dispelling with a yelp and a puff at the impact.

Naruto rubbed the agonizing pain on the back of his neck in relief at escaping half of a blow which would have knocked him unconscious.

"Master of Kage Bunshin," Minato huffed.

Suddenly, wind was knocked out of his lungs as he was blasted forward by an explosion. _Naruto's explosive seal!_ Then a foot connected with his ribs from underneath, throwing him high into the air like a ragdoll. Ignoring pain from a rib or two which had most certainly snapped, Minato activated the Hiraishin seal he had managed to place on the other just moments earlier. Naruto felt the subtle heat of a seal activate on the spot he was massaging and blurred away just in time to separate himself from Minato's appearance and kunai slash next to where he had been standing.

"You always impress me with your speed, Naruto." The older blonde's voice and eyes held obvious pride in his friend. "No one else would have been able to avoid that."

Naruto blushed from the unexpected compliment and dipped his head to hide his face; many of the kunoichi in the crowd couldn't help but "awwww!" at the adorable gesture, causing him to flush a deeper pink and rub the back of his head in embarrassment.

Minato staggered over to the Hunter-nin and extended a hand to ruffle his messy hair.

"How about we call it a tie?"

Naruto looked up and smiled sheepishly. "Yeah…sounds good to me."

He frowned at the cuts which littered Minato's body. "Can you teach me medical jutsu in case you can't heal yourself someday?"

Minato smiled as he slung an arm over Naruto's shoulders. Both of them stumbled out of the destroyed training ground to meet Jaguar who was waiting at a bench with a medical kit and emanating clear disapproval even with his face hidden behind the mask.

"Captain. Uzuhara-san. I hope you had a good reason for this."

Both blondes looked at him innocently.

Jaguar sighed, tending to Minato's burn. "Nevermind, I don't want to know."

Although the crowd began to thin, many still remained in place, gawking as if waiting for an encore. Naruto attempted to glare them away but failed miserably, only eliciting identical snorts from both Minato and Jaguar.

Lion and Leopard approached them. "Nice job, you two. Good seeing you again, Aka."

Naruto was stumped by the warmth in their eyes. Warmth directed at _him_. There was none of the usual hostility that even Sasuke had shown when they met behind masks. Sasuke hadn't known his identity, but it had hurt all the same.

"Uhh…you too. Lion and Leopard, right…?"

The two exchanged amused glances before turning back to Minato and Naruto.

"You two better disappear for a few days until the Commander and Hokage-sama calm down," Leopard said.

"They're going to be hopping mad," Lion continued.

"Commander was angry the last time you two destroyed Ground 4."

"It took five months to fix!"

"Now you've messed it up again…"

"And this time makes last time look like child's play…"

"Good luck, mates."

"We'll get your coffins ready."

Naruto looked back and forth between the snickering pair as terror spread through him. The four ANBU-nin looked at him in surprise as his head dropped into his hands.

Naruto moaned. "I have my spring Shinobi Assessment in two days, and Sandaime-Jijii's going to be there to nail my ass."

Minato's three teammates stared at Naruto in astonishment.

"Hokage-sama will be watching your assessment?" Lion asked incredulously.

The distraught blonde nodded pitifully, missing the reason for Team 9's shock. "And he won't let me out of the village. I proposed an important mission and even offered him porn. He shot down everything. He rejected _porn_!"

"Naruto…I don't think you are supposed to spread word of Hokage-sama's perverseness."

Naruto eeped and clapped his hands over his mouth.

However, Minato's teammates paid the Hokage's apparent unsavory hobby no heed; they were stuck on the comment that the village leader would personally watch his assessment, something which only occurred with the highest level shinobi such as the Sannin and ANBU Captains.

While the four ANBU and Naruto talked, Tiger stood off to the side, watching the Hunter-nin intensely. He was having difficulty reconciling Aka who had been so cold when they first met and this Uzuhara who was so frank and unguarded.

Tiger strode towards the group, jaw clenching as Uzuhara's eyes snapped to his figure and hardened.

Tiger grimaced. Uzuhara's vigilance was his fault, he thought, unable to discern whether he felt contempt, curiosity, or guilt towards the Hunter-nin. Maybe a bit of all three.

As he filled the space beside Leopard, Minato smiled up at him from his seat on the bench.

"Hey Tiger, did you watch too?"

Tiger nodded. "Impressive as always, Captain," he replied but his eyes didn't leave the smaller blonde's.

Naruto stared up defiantly, silently daring the ANBU to say anything.

"How did you make it into the Corps?" The question tumbled out of Tiger's mouth.

"Huh?"

"I asked, how did you make it into the Corps?" It was repeated with more force.

A moment of tense silence.

Naruto chuckled. The chuckles grew into mirthless laughter and then almost hysterical guffaws. Abruptly, he stopped.

"I get it now, Tiger-san." He gave an eerie smile completely devoid of humor. "You applied to the Corps but were rejected."

He didn't look for an answer because he already knew.

The ANBU-nin sneered. "What did you have that I didn't?"

The chuckles started again, but this time it was tinged with darkness. "You applied to the Corps without even knowing. I bet you even applied twice."

The tightening of the jaw gave the man away.

"You should be glad you didn't make it." Naruto smirked.

Tiger bristled.

"Wait wait, let me finish. You should be happy to have been rejected because that means you lacked the most vital ingredients. You asked what I had that you didn't, right?"

Tiger nodded sharply.

"What I had that you were missing was trauma and controlled insanity." All five men of Team 9 looked at him in confusion.

"You didn't have what it takes to handle the darkness of the job because you yourself haven't experienced enough darkness. Even though we see little of each other, all Hunter-nin understand each other very well because we've all suffered. Neglect, abuse, betrayal, loss, torture, rape. You name it, there's someone who's survived it. Because of that, we don't know how to function among untainted shinobi anymore." Naruto closed his eyes in a thoughtful pause. "Sure, some of us suffered more than others, but we're all connected by our pain. Tiger-san, I was – am still – the most qualified Hunter-nin in Corps history."

"Very few shinobi have felt more than I." Naruto opened his wild eyes to show their horrified faces a sample of the now tightly reigned insanity within him. "You all saw my control slip in Rain. This's why the Corps demands perfect chakra control; perfect control over chakra means perfect control over the mind."

"You should be happy to have been rejected, Tiger-san, because it means you're sane."

"Alright, enough of that depressing stuff!" Naruto's eyes cleared, and his lips formed a lopsided grin. "I'm hungry and I have to apologize to Minato. I got Sandaime-Jijii to add ramen to the cafeteria menu once a week; there's no way I'm missing that today."

Team 9, excluding Minato, was taken aback by the sudden 180 degree change in the Hunter-nin's demeanor.

Naruto stood and stretched his arms above his head before grabbing Minato's hand to drag him towards the main building, leaving four elite shinobi frozen and speechless.

"Shit, we ANBU are assholes…" Tiger whispered.

* * *

"Do you think I overdid it?" Naruto asked as he pulled Minato through the hallways, tightening his grip on the larger hand apprehensively.

Minato tugged the smaller blonde towards him, stopping them in a deserted hall.

Leaning his back against the wall, he gathered Naruto into a tight hug. "You didn't. It was fine. I know my team well enough to know that they understand now."

"They'll think Hunter-nin are bigger freaks."

"They won't."

Naruto wrapped his arms around the constant pillar of his strength.

"Do you think we're freaks?" He laid his cheek on a shoulder.

Minato shivered at the breath ghosting across his skin.

"No, never."

Naruto shifted closer and buried his face into his friend's neck.

"I'm sorry for not telling you," he said in a small voice.

Minato tilted his head back onto the wall behind him. "It's not your fault. I was being irrational, and I'm so sorry." He lifted a hand to run his fingers through Naruto's hair.

"I should have told–"

"No. I was the one being stupid. You did _nothing_ _wrong_," Minato said firmly. "I just saw that Sakumo-senpai knew, and he looked so smug about it so…I got jealous…"

Naruto's head jerked up. Minato couldn't help but miss the weight.

"Jealous?" The Hunter-nin's brow furrowed in bewilderment.

Minato nodded, lowering his head to place his forehead against Naruto's. He dropped his hand back down around the smaller blonde's waist to rub small, soothing circles with his thumb and was pleased to feel tension seep out of the lean body.

"I'm used to having you to myself so I got jealous of senpai. I knew it was wrong to feel spiteful but I couldn't help it and directed my anger at you. I'm sorry, so don't apologize again, okay?"

"Oh…" A slight pink dusted across Naruto's cheeks.

"Hmmm, I'm fine with Kakashi-kun, but for some reason, the way Sakumo-senpai acts around you gives me a bad feeling. I want you to be careful around him, alright?"

Unable to form words, the smaller blonde nodded.

"I hope you aren't mad at me, Naruto."

"No!"

Minato smiled gratefully.

He lifted his face to brush a light kiss on Naruto's bare forehead before grabbing a hand to pull him towards the cafeteria.

Behind him, Naruto blinked owlishly. Slowly, as what happened moments before registered in his mind, he absently raised his free hand to touch his forehead.

The pink on his cheeks bloomed into a full, crimson blush.

He prayed to Kami that the blush would fade by the time they arrived at the cafeteria, but he doubted it would happen in time.

What he didn't see was that Minato's cheeks were just as red as his.

* * *

After two days of dodging messengers from a very angry Hokage, Naruto's assessment date arrived. He dragged his feet reluctantly to Training Ground 5 for the Combat portion. He also dragged a very reluctant Minato by the arm. If he had to face the wrath of Sarutobi Hiruzen, he wasn't going to do it alone.

"Oh shit."

At Naruto's cursing, Minato snapped his head to the view in front of them.

"_Commander…_" he whispered, heart sinking as he saw both the Hokage and the ANBU leader waiting for them. "Naruto, we're going to die today."

"At least we won't die alone…" Naruto tried to console both Minato and himself but felt even worse after saying it. "We're the fastest in Konoha right? What if we ran now? Missing-nin life doesn't sound too bad… sounds pretty exciting, actually."

"We'd have the entire ANBU and Hunter-nin forces on our tails for the rest of our lives…"

"Okay, okay, bad idea."

Naruto almost whimpered, recalling the dreadful punishment the Sandaime had given him as a child for switching the signboards of all the stores in Konoha proper. Apparently, he had walked into a lingerie shop by accident instead of the bookstore.

Naruto personally thought the 'by accident' part was a lie, and that he shouldn't have been punished since the old man ended up with porn either way.

The two blondes stood stiffly in front of the two intimidating leaders, one with a tick above his greying eyebrow and the other with irritation rolling off of his rigid posture. Naruto didn't even want to imagine what the irritated Commander's face would look like behind that snarling animal mask.

"Minato-kun. _Naruto_," Sarutobi began.

"Hey," Naruto exclaimed. "How come you sound angrier at me?"

Sarutobi glared at the interruption. "Because, _Naruto_, you are responsible for most of the damage on Training Ground 4."

"No I wasn…okay I was," Naruto corrected himself quickly when killing intent began to leak out of the Hokage.

Sarutobi opened his mouth to speak only to be interrupted again.

"You said to fix things with Minato, so I did!" Naruto hid behind the taller blonde and peered over a shoulder. "I was just following your orders, Jijii."

The Commander coughed to the side, irritation calming as his amusement grew.

Sarutobi directed a glare at the Commander before focusing back on the troublemaker. _My idiotic subordinates!_ He fumed inwardly.

"I will give you an ultimatum. Win against your Assessment opponent today, or else for the next six months you will join genin teams on D-rank missions in your free time."

Naruto blanched.

"Y-You mean the Commander?"

"What if that was the case?"

"I'll just take the D-ranks and fight Minato instead! How the hell do you expect me to survive against the _ANBU Commander_? You've gone senile, old man…"

The Commander coughed again, irritation evaporating at the last comment.

"Naruto–"

"No, Uzuhara-kun," the masked man cut in, "I am not your opponent today, although I look forward to a match someday."

Naruto's shoulders sagged in relief, and he stepped out from behind his friend in a much better mood.

"So, who is it then?"

Sarutobi finally gave up his fury as a futile cause.

"I mentioned this assessment would be a treat, and I believe you will consider it so. However, he is…late." He shook his head. "Minato-kun, could you retrieve my wayward student from you-know-where?"

"No need, sensei." A large figure landed heavily between them. "The great Jiraiya-sama has arrived!"

Naruto stumbled backwards as he took in the large man posing on the back of a toad. Fewer wrinkles and shorter hair. But the same perverted leer which gave away where he had been moments before.

"No…"

Minato caught the smaller blonde before he could stumble again.

"Him…?" Naruto asked weakly.

"Naruto, your opponent is my student, Jiraiya."

The man leapt off of the toad to stand in front of the weak-kneed Hunter-nin.

"So you're the cutie that's gotten himself into a bind." Jiraiya circled the blonde as a predator would circle its prey. Once arriving full circle, he bent down to look closely into Naruto's wide, azure eyes.

Pulling back, he breathed out a heavy sigh. "How disappointing. If you had the gift of womanly assets instead of dangly bits, you'd be perfect research material."

"What?" Naruto yelped, taking a step back only to bump into Minato.

The larger blonde automatically wrapped his arms around Naruto's neck. "This…is my perverted teacher, Jiraiya. It seems you two already know of each other. Naru…I apologize ahead of time on behalf of Sensei for whatever perversion he will no doubt throw at you."

"I've heard a few things about you from Gamabunta." Jiraiya's leer returned even wider as he reached to lift Naruto's chin for a better look. "Hmm, on second thought, I wouldn't mind speaking with you at length later on."

Minato yanked his friend back from those twitching fingers, glaring fiercely.

"Ohhh? What's this?" White-haired Sannin smirked, eyes flickering between the two blondes glued front to back. "It seems you already have my apprentice wrapped around your little finger."

_Oh kami, was he this bad before?_ Naruto thought in alarm. _Or is this the 'virility of youth'?_

"Naruto, stay away from him. Your body is in danger." He pulled them back several more paces.

Jiraiya snorted incredulously. "Minato, have you confused me with someone else? Like yourself, perhaps?"

"Don't be mistaken. I will forever be a worshipper of women!" He raised his arms and gestured reverently with the air of a fanatical devotee. "Let me tell you, the curves of a woman are the most magnificent lines that the generous gods have bestowed upon us mortals. Can you not see it? Those plump orbs like succulent fruit ripe for the picking. Slender fingers flitting across the silk of skin. Water trickling alluringly down tender thighs. Yes! There aren't enough words to express the beauty of a woman rising out of onsen wate–"

"Then stop speaking, pervert!" Minato snapped.

Naruto noticed that behind Ero-Sennin, the Hokage's eyes had glazed over. And…is that drool?

"I know you're planning to dump him in a dangerous situation to increase your chances of research." Minato tightened protective arms.

"But you'll thank me when it's over, Naruto-chan." Jiraiya grinned. "I guarantee it will be the best several hours of your life. Afterwards, I'll teach you the superior ways of a super pervert. Consider it an induction."

"Uhh…" Naruto gripped Minato's arms locked around him. "I-I think I'm alright." This time, he was the one to push them back several steps.

Jiraiya frowned. "Why is it so difficult to find an apprentice to pass on my treasured skills of super perversion?"

_I'm sure mini-Kakashi would gladly be your apprentice_. "Um, so Combat Assessment…" Naruto pulled Jiraiya and the Sandaime out from their daydreams.

"Ahh, that's right. The reason why I was torn away from the beautiful blossoms of Sunflower Village. Now, those were first rate hips…"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I just have to beat this pervert right?" He asked the Commander, the only person of authority who wasn't mentally incapacitated.

At the sharp nod, he turned his face towards Minato. "Alright, I'll get this over with quickly so we can get back to those Suiton scrolls."

As soon as he stepped out of Minato's hold, Naruto's hands blurred through a long series of hand seals. After the final seal, he clapped his hands together sharply.

"_Fuuton: Reppuushou (Violent Wind Palm)."_

"_Raiton: Shichuu Shibari (Four Pillar Bind)."_

"_Katon: Hibashiri (Running Fire)."_

"_Kuchiyose!"_

A powerful gale disoriented Jiraiya. Four giant pillars of rock rose around the man, immobilizing and zapping him with bolts of lightning, immediately after which a stream of fire formed a ring within the pillars, rapidly closing in on Jiraiya. Then a crimson fox landed within the ring, melding into the flames between each leap of attack.

"Multiple jutsu formation!" Sarutobi exclaimed, evacuating to the edge of the training ground with the Commander and Minato. "Four…no, five of them at once!"

A mist settled around the center of the field, blocking their view of clashing sounds within.

"No, Kaen!" Naruto's frantic shout followed by a pained yip and a puff rang through the clearing.

"You and your fox almost got me there." Jiraiya's voice was full of mirth.

CLANG

"Nice block, Naruto-chan. You're pretty handy with that wakizashi."

CLANG

"But let's see if you can block all of my hair."

CLANG CLANG

"Ahhh!"

"Didn't check for clones did you, Ero-Sennin?"

Everything went silent. The mist dissipated, showing Jiraiya standing alone amongst debris of fallen pillars and blackened ground with scorch marks everywhere on his body. His white hair was still split and elongated in needle form, ready to skewer the next attack.

However, nothing moved.

Minato sucked in a sharp breath. _Somewhere underneath._

Jiraiya also seemed to have reached the same conclusion when he stabbed the ground around him with spikes of hardened hair.

Still, there was no response.

Suddenly, the toad sage jumped, only half a second before the ground exploded beneath him.

"_Doton: Yomi Numa (Swamp of the Underworld)!"_

At Jiraiya's shout, the ground became a thick, adhesive, chakra-infused mud. It caught Naruto's feet and dragged him into the swamp. No matter how much he struggled, the mud wouldn't let him go and struggling only covered him with more adhesive sludge.

Naruto snarled but stopped struggling.

"_Suiton: Suigun Suima no Jutsu (Water Drowning Technique)!"_

He formed a large spiraling stream of water to crash into himself, throwing him out of the swamp to land heavily on his back.

"Oh? Attacking yourself to escape. Reckless but effective," Jiraiya commented approvingly.

Naruto hauled himself up onto his feet before pulling out a handful of paper tags from his pouch. He tossed the tags up, allowing them to scatter randomly into the air to cover the entire expanse of the field. Curiously, they stayed afloat instead of fluttering to the ground. Jiraiya and their audience watched the tags suspiciously as they had never seen anything like it.

Naruto formed a monkey hand seal before disappearing and appearing above Jiraiya to punch downwards. Jiraiya reacted by sliding to the side and slamming a palm into the blonde's leg, but before the palm connected, Naruto disappeared again to appear at a tag in the air several feet away.

"Teleportation?"

Naruto smirked. "Guess again."

He appeared behind Jiraiya and connected a kick on his kidney. Grunting, the Toad Sage spun around to swipe him with a chakra blade, only to meet empty air.

"Got this idea from Minato's Hiraishin. I haven't figured out how to summon myself through dimensions yet, but this is a pretty cool substitute, don't you think?" Satisfaction flashed in his eyes. "I made shunshin into Fuuinjutsu, kinda like the seals on Minato's kunai, except my tags are less bulky to carry around. This is waaay faster than regular shunshin and doesn't tax the body as much. A regular shinobi could probably perform it ten times instead of just two or three before the pressure in their body cells gets to dangerous levels."

"Shunshin ten times! That's impossible!" Jiraiya voiced everyone's thoughts.

"Yup, ten times." Naruto grinned widely at his baffled expression. "And because of my fast healing, I can do it as many times as I want."

He appeared to Jiraiya's side and swept his feet from under him. Then he punched down onto the large man's stomach, causing him to crash downwards hard enough to form an indentation in the ground.

Jiraiya retaliated by throwing an unexpected chop at Naruto's leg. Everyone heard two loud cracks as it connected twice on his shin and ankle before Naruto fuuin shunshined away. He fell to his hands and knees on the other side of the training grounds

Jiraiya used his own shunshin to appear next to Naruto and kicked him in the side before anyone registered his change of location. Another crack signaled a broken rib. Immediately afterwards, he blew out fire from his mouth to engulf the Hunter-nin in toad oil and red flames.

Naruto shouted in pain but managed to snap his fingers, engulfing Jiraiya in Grey Fire. The Grey Fire, though not as vicious as Black, was much more potent than Jiraiya's, eating away at fabric and hair at a faster rate than the regular flames around Naruto.

With a shit-eating grin on his face, the blonde put out the flames around his own body and watched the show unfold.

Jiraiya's clothes were burning away rapidly to reveal more and more skin, and before he successfully extinguished the grey flames, he was standing in the center of the clearing, naked and bald.

_Naked_ and _bald_.

Naruto collapsed on the ground, howling with laughter as Jiraiya's hands flashed forward to cover his exposed crotch. Minato looked horrified while Sarutobi's eyebrows threatened to fly off of his forehead.

"Ero-Sennin," Naruto laughed harder when the Toad Sage lifted a tentative hand to feel his hairless head. "The skin on your head is as silky as a woman's skin. If you didn't have _your_ dangly bits, I'd say you could be a woman too. A very, very ugly woman."

Sarutobi choked. "Jiraiya, I will have to cut this match short and declare Naruto the winner. Please put on some clothes…_immediately_."

Naruto gasped for air and seal shunshined to Minato's side, leaning heavily on his friend to steady himself and his hysterics. Minato had whimpered and turned his green face to the side, staring intently at faraway trees.

"Naruto. Please, please, never do that again – for my sanity," Minato rasped. "The nightmares…"

However, the ANBU Commander's reaction was the exact opposite.

"…Uzuhara-kun, you are welcome to join the ANBU at any time."

Naruto fell over and laughed to tears.

* * *

**A/N:** This turned out to be kind of like an interlude: two fight scenes, a bit of humor, and some fluff. How was it?

(*) Houfuku no Honoo (Flames of Retribution) – credited to Mrs. Kitsune for naming the Hunter-nin's Black Fire. Thanks!

Sorry for the angry message at the top. I know Chapter 13 is a bit late for that warning, but I was angry at hateful people like that, not just in fanfiction but everywhere, and wanted to vent. I've put up the same note in Ch 3… Thank you to ChrissyCrimson and Mai for coming to my defense!

Next chapter: Jiraiya gets some clothes; he and Naruto talk. Kushina again. Plot progression (I promise!).

_July 4, 2012_


	14. Watch Me Blush

**A/N:** Yay! I reached 100k words on this story! Thank you everyone for your support and feedback!

* * *

Here are answers to some questions which have come up:

**Q: What's the difference between Naruto, Aka, Akashiori, and Haikage.**

**A:** Naruto is recognized by the village as a friendly jounin and by the ANBU as a fellow Black Ops agent, Aka is a regular Hunter-nin managing one division of the Kage Kaigi team like Shikaku and Yamanaka Inokazu, Akashiori is the Hunter-nin who reports directly to the Hokage as Second-in-Command and takes high profile missions, and Haikage is the leading power in the shadows who deals with international relations and is technically ranked the same as the Hokage. It's for maneuverability in all levels of the shinobi ranks. Each character holds different amounts of power and places in different areas of shinobi affairs. Very few know of the connection between any them (e.g. Kage Kaigi members, ANBU Team 9).

**Q: What happened to Minato's team in Rain the first time around, before Naruto used the time jutsu?**

**A:** The team couldn't sense Naruto's chakra so they failed in finding him. The rest is up to your imagination.

**Q: Is Shiro one of Naruto's personas?**

**A:** No, he's a demon fox summon who can enter Naruto's mindscape because of Kyuubi.

**Q: What's the deal with Kyuubi?**

**A:** The pre-timetravel Kyuubi was only half if itself (Yang) because the Yondaime sealed his Yin half into the Shinigami. When Naruto traveled back in time, Kushina's Kyuubi (which is both Yin & Yang) merged into Naruto's Kyuubi since Naruto's seal is stronger than Kushina's. Currently, the only Kyuubi in existence is the one behind Naruto's seal, and he is both Yin & Yang.

* * *

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Chapter 14: Watch Me Blush**

"Jiraiya! Don't just stand there. Put some clothes on!" Sarutobi barked.

The Toad Sage's eyes widened comically when his free hand frantically patted his waist and found nothing but skin. "My scroll!"

Naruto snickered from the ground where he was curled up, clutching his cramping stomach.

"You burned my scroll," Jiraiya exclaimed, dazed. "Wait, the scroll is fireproof…"

"Pfft. Ero-Sennin, you're only thirty-something right? Isn't it a bit early for your brain to be failing you?" Naruto uncurled and stood with difficulty. "Are you perhaps looking for…this?"

The Hunter-nin pulled the massive scroll out of thin air, flaunting it at the flustered Sannin. They all watched as a wicked grin formed on Naruto's face.

"Naruto, what are you planning?" Minato knew that grin. It was the grin of the dreaded master prankster. He had learned to make himself scarce whenever it made its appearance.

As four fellow shinobi watched enthralled, Naruto unsealed a small, unused containment scroll from his pouch, sealed Jiraiya's scroll inside, reared back a chakra enhanced arm, and _flung_ the scroll into the horizon.

Four sets of jaws dropped open.

Naruto whistled merrily.

"Y-you…" Jiraiya croaked, almost sounding like one of his toads.

"Good luck! The red light district is in that direction, so you better find it fast or else someone's going to pocket it and sell it before you're halfway there," Naruto informed him cheekily, mentally patting himself on the back. "But for your benefit, I made it so only your blood can unseal it." Naruto lifted a finger smudged with Jiraiya's blood from his wakizashi to show where he got the blood sample. "I even added a bit of your chakra signature around the scroll. Maybe if you're good enough, you might be able to trace it."

"Good enough?" Jiraiya retorted in outrage. "I'm the Toad Sage, one of the legendary Sannin, the connoisseur of gorgeous women, the–"

"Jiraiya!" Sarutobi barked as the naked man lifted his hands to his hips and straightened his back proudly, inadvertently emphasizing his uncovered crotch and chest. "Clothes!"

Naruto sniggered. Obviously, his Jiraiya wasn't as pragmatic as the he would be in two decades. Of course twenty years and a war would significantly change anyone; even five years and a war would mold Minato from the current guileless man into cunning Hokage-material. He just never imagined that Jiraiya had been _this_ senseless in his youth. Even better was the way he responded so beautifully to the taunts. It was unfair, but it felt so good to get back at Ero-Sennin through this man, and Naruto didn't feel a single drop of guilt. In fact, he already had a long list of pranks lined up.

"Kid, I'll track you down later for our talk. You better hope I find that scroll without trouble," Jiraiya threatened him but failed to look menacing due to his nudity. Applying a henge of clothes and hair, he vanished with a furious puff.

Sarutobi could no longer hold back his guffaws. "Excellent performance as always, Naruto."

"Thanks, old man. You can stop worrying about my pranks now. I have a new victim," Naruto replied cheerfully.

"Don't go overboard." Sarutobi directed stern eyes at the blonde. "After your last Tokubetsu Jounin mission, two of your temporary team members nearly retired from field work."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. This is Ero-Sennin. He should be able to take whatever I throw at him."

"Take care. You probably know just as well as I that Jiraiya can become very hot-blooded when his masculinity is threatened."

Naruto waved off the warning with a careless hand and followed the Hokage to the remainder of his Shinobi Assessment.

"Whatever." The prankster smirked. "I'll just flash my Oiroke, and he'll forgive me right away."

* * *

Jiraiya grumbled unintelligibly to himself as he stalked down the street. The stupid kid had burned his clothes, burned off his magnificent hair, and exposed his manhood for his teacher, student, and esteemed colleague to see. He could count on the Commander to stay silent since he had an eccentric appreciation for humor, but Sarutobi-sensei and Minato were no doubt going to tease him mercilessly about the incident.

Then the brat threw away his scroll, which had landed right in the middle of a high end brothel guarded by mercenary shinobi. It had taken him hours to sneak in and out, though he had to admit, part of that was his own fault for getting distracted many times along the way.

He vowed to get revenge. Even after he had donned a new set of clothes, he had to remain under henge because his hair just _Wouldn't. Grow. Back. _He had immediately tried using his hair jutsu to elongate his hair, but because the fire had burned it down to the roots, there was nothing for the technique to work with, leaving his head depressingly bald and impressively shiny.

Jiraiya ducked into Ichiraku and paused before choosing the seat next to a black-haired civilian male.

"Good evening, Teuji-san, one beef for me…and one miso for this guy next to me."

The civilian jerked up from his bowl, staring at the large man with bewildered ebony eyes. "S-sir? Who…"

"Cut it out, kid. Sarutobi-sensei told me you'd be here tonight. He also told me how good you are with disguises."

The civilian stared at Jiraiya for several moments, breaking out in a large grin once he completed his scrutiny of the man. "Mediocre information gathering skills. I expected more from the 'Great Jiraiya-sama'. You should have collected, analyzed, and looked underneath the data before approaching." With a mock salute, he faded into smoke.

'…Kage Bunshin? No, expert Shunshin,' he thought dazedly, quickly sweeping the ramen stand. 'Where did he go?'

"Jiraiya-sama," Teuji announced, "here is your beef ramen, and…do you know what happened to your friend?"

"Friend?"

"Yes, I have the miso ramen you ordered for him."

"He's, uhh…well, he's…" Jiraiya scrambled for words.

The ramen stand owner narrowed his eyes. "If your friend left without paying, I will have to ask you to cover his ten bowls," Teuji told him firmly.

"Ten bowls?" Jiraiya repeated incredulously. _Damn, that little brat!_

As the Toad Sage walked out of the stand, the owner ran after him and called out, "Thank you for your business, Jiraiya-sama." Teuji bowed to him in gratitude. "It's very kind of you to pay for Naruto-kun's meal."

"What, Teuji-san, you knew it was him?"

"Of course I knew, you big pervert." Teuji gave him a foxy smile. "I was there the whole time!" With a puff, the 'owner' dispelled, leaving a furious Jiraiya alone in the street.

"NARUTO!"

Elsewhere, the blonde strolled contentedly, rubbing his full stomach and laughing at the perverted Sannin. He would have to do something nice for Ichiraku's owner. The entire incident had been a prank with the Hokage, Teuji, and Teuchi as accomplices.

Naruto was jarred from his triumph when he was suddenly slammed down, face mashing into the ground to eat dirt. _When did he__–_?!

"Finally found you, insufferable brat," Jiraiya growled under his breath, grinding his foot down on Naruto's back. "We're going to talk." He hauled the blonde up and over his shoulders roughly and vanished with a puff to reappear in front of a hotel. Bystanders stared in amusement at the large man manhandling a loud, thrashing boy through the lobby.

Once they entered a rented room, Jiraiya dumped his struggling luggage onto the bed and took a seat in a chair.

"First we're going to talk. Afterwards, I'm going to get you back for my hair."

Naruto snorted. "Your hair didn't grow back?"

Jiraiya scowled. "Alright, I heard from Gamabunta that you're gotten yourself in a bind. Explain it to me."

Leaning against the headboard, Naruto calmed and looked at him expressionlessly. "I can't tell you anything without getting Jijii's approval."

"Done. I already spoke with him."

Naruto eyed the man warily and sighed, closing his eyes as a hint of his previous depression returned. "I made a time rewind jutsu seal – just for short moments. Several minutes max. But in battle, I accidentally put too much power into it and sent myself back twenty-four years. I've reviewed all the existing scrolls on time travel and dimension hopping theory, and they all say the same thing as my own conclusions." The blond opened his shadowed eyes. "I can't go back to my time, and the future – my personal future – has been erased. I don't know what happened to the others in my timeline. Maybe their lives go on, and I've only gone missing. Or maybe they've been erased too…"

"I wouldn't believe you if it weren't for Gamabunta. He was laughing about it, but I can only offer my condolences." Jiraiya shook his head solemnly. "Do you want to return to your timeline? The toads recognized you, so that could be a lead."

Naruto was silent for one long minute. "…Yes…and no. I want to see my friends so badly. They're my family, you know. But now that I've gotten to know people in this time, I feel like I can't abandon them to what's to come… Ero-Sennin, it gets bad. Really bad. There are wars, destruction, and death. Now that I realize this Konoha is just as real as mine, I don't want this Konoha to suffer through that." His jaw clenched in miserable frustration. "Damn it! I got attached. I don't want you and Minato and Kakashi and the others to feel the pain. Now that I've seen everyone's smiles…"

Jiraiya studied the man staring down at his fists, finally seeing more to the mischievous brat than his pranks and smirks. "Naruto, you're a good man, too selfless for your own good, and I want to thank you for that. I don't know if I could have made the same decision. I don't think many could."

Naruto jerked at his future/past godfather's words. "Th-that means a lot to me." He raised his eyes to meet the Toad Sage's. It was bright with unshed tears, filled with relief as a weight fell off his shoulders at having another person who knew and supported him.

A shaky grin formed on his lips. "I'm making you help. I'm going to work you hard, Ero-Sennin. I used to be your student, but this time I get to pull rank and order you around."

Jiraiya snorted in exasperation. "I took a dumb kid like you as my apprentice? I must have the worst luck, only second to Tsunade; neither of my apprentices turned out to be fellow perverts."

It was Naruto's turn to snort. "Be glad. If we were, we'd steal all the women and you wouldn't get any action or research."

Jiraiya glared.

The two shared several minutes of comfortable silence, just enjoying each other's company.

"You seem close to Minato."

"He's my father," Naruto mumbled, "And he wouldn't leave me alone."

"Your _father_?" Jiraiya burst out laughing, thumping the arm of his chair with a heavy hand. "This is gold! I almost feel sorry for him."

Naruto looked affronted. "What? I might not see this Minato as my dad, but I'm sure I can be a great son!"

"That's not it," the large man took gulps of air. _If my intuition is right, Minato likes you, even if he doesn't realize it yet._ "Nevermind, Naruto. Nevermind. You'll find out sooner or later." _That boy never lacked courage and determination._

Jiraiya changed the topic immediately.

"So Sarutobi-sensei tells me there's a war coming our way and that you're working to reduce the damage to Konoha. What have you got?"

Naruto shot him a final glare before shifting into half Akashiori and half Haikage. Jiraiya noted the change in demeanor with interest. "I have formed alliances with Waterfall, northern Rain, Sunagakure, and several smaller shinobi villages in the west. They have agreed to refrain from participating in skirmishes unless absolutely necessary. We also have confirmed a handful of villages in armed neutrality. I have Kage Bunshin scattered around the western villages and territories as lookouts to report any suspicious activities. Earth Country was slightly more difficult to infiltrate since they have already begun preparations for war – or at least for battle."

Akashiori frowned. "I am afraid my actions over the past eight and a half months may have hastened Iwa's plans. I have been slowly chipping away at their capital and monetary inflow. With the quarterly financial reports being compiled at this time, they have probably noticed the drop in exports as well as the many trade contracts which were not renewed. I can only hope this will extend the time necessary for preparations and delay their attacks."

Jiraiya whistled his regard. "You've been a busy little ant."

The Hunter-nin gave the man a flat look. "This is war, Jiraiya. If I could, I would put a stop to this entire affair. However, it is impossible to halt Iwa in its path, short of starting a civil war. I have been planting criminalizing evidence against the Tsuchikage and Iwa Council, but there may not be time to create enough political strife before Iwa initiates the world war."

"What can I do to help?"

"I need you to establish yourself in Kusa in the pretense of gathering research material for your next Icha Icha book." Akashiori grimaced at his own idea. "In my Past, Icha Icha had the power to end a war. I believe publishing one can kill three birds with one stone. You will be able to move around freely to monitor Kusa activities, reduce the citizens' productivity, and increase monetary outflow from the Kusa economy. Money is the main driver of the world, and it is the focus of my plan to reduce the severity of this war."

"Have you considered assassinating the Tsuchikage or Iwa Council members?"

"I have. However, it is too early to do so. There needs to be more political turmoil in Iwa. Otherwise, suspicion will befall Konoha or one of our allies instead of an internal party." Akashiori sighed. "That is my progress up to this point. My next move is to deal with our internal politics and Hanzou," he almost snarled the last word.

The Toad Sage didn't comment. He had been told of Naruto's imprisonment and his mental fragmentation, but he had little knowledge on psychology to be of any help.

"If you can, I want you to head out for Kusa within two weeks. In the meantime, I would like to experiment with the toad summons." The blonde's demeanor shifted again, returning to the easygoing Uzuhara Naruto. Tension in the room dissipated with the shift.

Jiraiya nodded his assent. With the talk of war complete, his shoulders relaxed and an impish grin returned to his face. "So tell me about Minato."

Naruto looked at Jiraiya quizzically. "Why?"

"Ohhhh, I just want to know what you think of your _father_."

"Hmm, like I said, I don't really think of this Minato as my dad. But he's awesome!" Naruto said excitedly. He told Jiraiya about all the things they had done together, how Minato had been supportive throughout all his mental and emotional issues, and what he had taught the time traveler in the Ninja Arts. Jiraiya watched the younger man fondly, affection and protectiveness filling him even though they had only met half a day ago. Could this be the Child of the Prophesy? He had thought it was Nagato or Minato, but he immediately recognized that Naruto was special, not because of a kekkei genkai or genius of the mind but because of his natural ability to change people for the better. The coming revolution that the Great Toad Sage had predicted of was a major change to the ninja world, and Naruto seemed to have all the qualities to bring about the world's salvation.

They talked for what felt like hours. When Naruto's eyelids dropped shut and head slumped to the side, Jiraiya realized that under all that responsibility and troubled past, he was just a boy with a heart of gold who craved acknowledgement.

The Toad Sage looked around the hotel room wondering what he should do with the boy. He summoned a toad and hesitated for a moment before sending it off to Minato. The ANBU Captain was sure to misunderstand…

Seconds later, Minato appeared in front of Jiraiya in a flash of yellow. _Whoa, that was fast!_

As soon as Naruto's unconscious form entered Minato's view, he snapped his head to his teacher. "What did you do to him?" Minato demanded.

"Brat! Just because he's here doesn't mean I did anything," Jiraiya defended with raised hands.

Minato narrowed his eyes in suspicion. He stepped over to the bed to look down at the Hunter-nin sleeping peacefully against the headboard and reached out a gentle hand to brush aside golden bangs. He carefully gathered his friend into his arms, whispered a quick thank you before flashing away.

Still lounging back in the chair, Jiraiya scratched his bald head. 'Where did I go wrong,' the greatest skirt chaser in history lamented. 'On top of not being a pervert, _my_ apprentice is attracted to men…'

"I think I need a drink and get laid," Jiraiya muttered to the empty room.

* * *

A week later, Naruto found himself huddled behind a bush, carefully hidden from view and bored out of his mind. He'd exhausted all of his chakra manipulation training, learned the theory behind the jutsu scrolls he'd brought, and lost two games of shōgi to Kyuubi in his mindscape.

Twenty seven feet away, behind the window, Uzumaki Kushina sat on her couch watching some girly TV show. How could someone so energetic be so boring?

'_You know the fault is yours, kit,'_ Kyuubi interrupted his thoughts. _'She is feeling out of sorts because of your proximity.'_

'I _know_, but couldn't she do something else, like train? Or at least watch a better show than The Ninja Bachelorette? It's disturbing!'

'_Not everyone is obsessed with getting stronger.'_

'I'm not obsessed. I'm diligent.'

Kyuubi's silence transmitted his skepticism.

'Anyway, how far along are we in breaking the connection? It's been a month of constant stalking. I don't think I could stand another day of this.' He batted away several insects attempting to crawl up his shirt and standard issue shinobi pants.

'_You are in luck. I can feel that we will finish absorbing all of my residual chakra in her seal either today or during the next session. You will need to be prepared for the severance. I cannot predict what will happen when the process is complete.'_

'You don't know?'

Kyuubi growled._ 'Of course I don't know. I have never before been in this situation.'_

'Right…'

Several hours later, Naruto was dozing behind the same bush while his mother ate ice cream from a large tub. Damn, he wanted some ice cream too.

Suddenly, his body was doused in pain. It felt like his limbs were being pulled apart in four directions, like his consciousness was being flattened and stretched close to breaking point. The pain continued to grow as he lost his sense of what was up and down.

It took all of his power to dull his scream into a moan. Kyuubi howled within him, suffering even more than his host as his very chakra twisted and stretched beyond comprehension. Naruto vaguely heard a scream in the background, barely recognizing its source.

_Mom…_

An intense spike of pain burst through him, and abruptly it was gone with a sharp, snapping sensation. He lay boneless on the ground, only managing to take shallow breaths by the will of that tiny sliver of conscious thought which had survived the ordeal.

'K-Kyuu?'

The responding groan was almost too weak to hear.

'I'm guessing that was the severance?'

A grunt came with a little more strength.

'It kind of felt like a rubber band snapping.'

They didn't move for another several minutes until Naruto lurched to sit up. "Shit, mom!" Ignoring the ache, he whipped around to look through the window. He saw that she had fallen off of the couch on her back, body twitching and hair a tangled mess as if she had been convulsing violently.

Naruto crawled several feet, then shakily stood to stumble over. He cut out a large piece of the window with fingers covered in unsteady chakra and tumbled inside. It was now time for him to put his deception techniques to work by pretending he didn't feel like he'd been fried by a lightning jutsu.

"Mom, mo–…Uzumaki-san." He hesitantly touched her shoulder, only then realizing the usual tug in his stomach was gone.

Naruto almost hyperventilated there. He was touching his mother. He was finally touching his mother!

The woman didn't move until he shook her gently. A soft moan signaled her return to consciousness and her eyes blinked opened. They were a beautiful deep blue.

"…Minato?"

"Um… I'm not Minato."

"Then who…?" Kushina asked weakly.

"I'm Uzuma– Uzuhara Naruto. I heard a scream from inside and saw you convulsing."

"Uzuhara? Uzuhara…" Kushina's lips pursed. "And you thought it was okay to break into my home?" She demanded.

"You were collapsed on the floor," he explained.

"Who said you could come in?" She asked fiercely.

"Wha…? I was worried!" Naruto replied just as hotly.

"That's no excuse!"

"Are you crazy?" Naruto stared at her incredulously. "Yeah, it's not an excuse; it's a legit reason!"

"How do I know you're not a thief or murderer?"

Naruto gaped. "If I was, I'd have already left or killed you!"

"You bastard, what gives you the right to shout at me?"

"You started it!"

The two glared at each other in an angry staring contest. Neither gave in, knowing instinctively that the first to look away would forever be the underling.

A soft cough sounded to their side.

Both Naruto and Kushina redirected their glares to the offending person. "What!"

Jaguar stood outside the window with his head tilted to the side quizzically. Naruto was sure the man was smiling underneath his mask.

"I felt an enormous spike in chakra in this area and came to investigate," the ANBU said calmly. "Is everything alright?"

Naruto turned his head to Kushina.

"What are you looking at me for? I'm fine."

"You're the one lying on the ground, looking like you'd just gone through the blender."

Kushina huffed. "I'm fine," she said even as she winced when her body twitched again.

"Fine, my ass," Naruto snorted.

"Then get me on the couch and get Minato," she demanded. "I know who you are. Minato won't stop talking about you. He goes on and on. Naruto this, and Naruto that."

The blonde growled. "Fine. ANBU-san, can you watch her until I get back?"

"Hey, teme! Aren't you going to put me on the couch?"

"No, baka. You can crawl up on your own." Naruto glared as he climbed back out the window. "ANBU-san, don't move her. She can do it herself."

Then he disappeared in a loud, angry shunshin.

Several awkward minutes later, he was back with Minato in tow.

"Minato, can you help me up? Your friend wouldn't listen to me."

Minato frowned as he placed her on the couch. "Naruto, can you tell me what happened?"

Kushina glared. "Why are you asking him?"

"Oh, right. Kushina, what happened?" Minato corrected himself.

She told him, making sure to add the part about Naruto's break-in.

Naruto huffed. "Yes, I broke in. But I was worried. Anyone would have done the same."

"Kushina…calm down," Minato said gently. "I'm sure he was only trying to help."

After a few moments of silence, she gave in grudgingly. "Sorry, Uzuhara-san. I must be in a bad mood from what just happened. Thanks for coming to my rescue. _Even if you didn't really do anything_," Kushina whispered the last comment under her breath.

'Kyuu, is my mom really this rude?' Naruto asked.

'_She could be, but very rarely and not often to this degree. Typically, she only acts this way to people who have wronged her severely or towards enemy shinobi.'_

'But I just met her! How could I have done anything wrong?' Naruto asked incredulously.

'_You have stolen much of Minato's time from her.'_

'What? That's _it_? It's not like I was doing it on purpose.'

'_She feels…'_ Kyuubi sighed, suddenly feeling an odd kinship with Jiraiya. _'Nevermind, you will find out sooner or later.'_

'_Just know that she will calm down within the next five years. Although you have lost much of your childhood gusto, your personalities still share enough similarities to clash.'_

Naruto groaned. 'So basically, my mom acts towards me like I did towards Sasuke…'

'…_Yes, that is an apt way of phrasing it.'_

Naruto watched Jaguar perform a medical diagnosis on her. "Namikaze-san, I don't see anything wrong. Uzumaki-san is in perfect health."

"Do you still hurt anywhere?" Minato asked.

"Not anymore. I want your friend to fix my window."

Naruto rolled his eyes and picked up the glass without comment. Using his chakra which had restabilized its flow, he melded the piece back into the window.

"There," he sighed.

"Thank you," Kushina replied curtly.

Minato looked helplessly between his two irritated friends, finally seeing the truth to Naruto's claim about emitting 'anti-girl pheromones.'

"Since you're okay now, we'll be going." Minato slung his arm over Naruto's shoulders. "I've been looking for this guy all day." Turning to the smaller blonde, he spoke enthusiastically. "I found an cool jutsu you might be interested in."

'_Ouch…that is adding insult to injury.'_ Kyuubi chuckled. _'Kushina will not take this lying down.'_

Naruto groaned inwardly.

"Can I see it too?" She asked sweetly.

Minato had no concrete reason to reject her request, but anxiety grew within him as he watched her eyeing Naruto suspiciously. He feared an explosion going off sometime soon, especially from Kushina's fiery side.

After Jaguar left, the three pored over Minato's katon jutsu scroll. Or attempted to.

"So, Uzuhara-kun, what do you do?"

"Uhh, I'm a Tokubetsu Jounin."

"What division?"

"Infiltration and Reconnaissance."

"Interesting, so you're good at tricking people?"

"I guess yeah. I'd have to be for my work."

"I see… How did you two meet?"

"Minato helped me out a lot a few months ago. He was also my Shinobi Assessment combat opponent."

"I bet you got your ass handed to you."

"We tied."

"No way, I don't believe you."

"I'm not lying!"

"If you're so good, why haven't I seen you around before?"

"I was away on a long-term mission."

"What about Academy? You're a year younger so we should have passed each other at some point."

"I studied on my own and did not enroll."

"Didn't enroll? Or did you fail?"

"Kushina! Why are you–"

"I chose not to enroll due to extenuating circumstances."

Minato whipped around with wide eyes. This wasn't Naruto anymore; Kushina had triggered Akashiori to the surface.

"Kushina, that's enough," Minato snapped.

"Uzumaki-san, I will take my leave. I sincerely apologize for disrupting your evening." The Hunter-nin stood gracefully. "Minato, I am being dispatched for a mission tomorrow morning and must begin preparations. I will hopefully return in a month."

After a respectful nod of his head, he vanished without sound or smoke.

"Hmph! What a jerk."

Minato turned to Kushina evenly, but his eyes flashed with fury. "No, you were the jerk. I don't know what's gotten into you, but the way you acted was uncalled for."

"How can you trust him? He just pops out of nowhere and befriends you."

"_I'm_ the one who befriended him. Naruto's the most kind-hearted, trustworthy, and loyal person I've ever met," he defended. "You don't know what he's gone through for this village, and I won't tolerate anyone slandering him."

"And what about me? What about what I've gone through for this village? Did you forget my little tenant?"

"I know for a fact that his hardships are many times worse than yours."

Mouth dropping open, angry tears collected in the corners of her eyes. "…Minato, you clueless idiot!" She stormed out of the room.

The ANBU Captain was at a loss. He'd never seen the redhead so hostile towards someone before. He didn't know what to do in this situation or which problem to fix first. Hell, he didn't even know what went wrong! Kushina had suddenly attacked Naruto, who had held himself back from attacking her back. Minato knew Naruto had been angry from how he switched to Akashiori for control over his emotions.

_Women are impossible to figure out._

He activated the Hiraishin seal he had convinced Naruto to leave on the back of his neck, but as he was about to exit the dimensional void, he smacked into an invisible wall, tossing him onto the floor in the hall outside of Naruto's room. _What the…_

Moments later, the door opened. Naruto leaned against the wall just inside the door frame and crossed his arms, an amused smirk forming on his lips.

"Why, hello, dear friend. Find anything interesting down there?" He teased.

"What was that?" Minato asked as he picked himself off the ground.

"My seals trump yours," Naruto replied proudly.

"Seals? In your room?"

The younger blonde chuckled. "Do you want to come in?"

"Can I really?"

"You'll be the second visitor, after Sandaime-Jijii."

A burst of happiness rushed through the Captain. Naruto trusted him enough to share another private part of himself.

"I'll key your chakra signature in." Naruto opened his door invitingly and expertly scratched intricate symbols onto the frame. "Careful. It'll feel weird."

As Minato crossed the line of the door frame, vertigo hit him for an instant. The feeling passed once he was completely inside.

"Take off your shoes. Welcome to my humble abode."

Minato swept his eyes around the room which had a floor plan that was a mirror image of his own. Naruto had plants in every corner and at least one on every elevated surface. The bed was messily made, and scrolls and notebooks filled the bookcase. The desk was also littered with half completed seal tags, ink, and various writing utensils.

"Are those seals on the walls?" He walked over to study one.

"Yup, my best privacy seals embedded with traps and defense mechanisms that respond to ill or dubious intent," Naruto explained. "The fact that you aren't incapacitated or unconscious right now shows you're friendly."

"These are brilliant. And they're keyed to certain chakra signatures?"

"Only you, me, and Jijii can get in this room unless the intruder knocks down the entire wall, which I've also reinforced with seals." Naruto gestured for the other over to sit on the bed. Once they were settled comfortably next to each other, Minato glanced at Naruto apologetically.

"Sorry about Kushina. I don't know why she…"

Naruto shrugged. "It's alright. I'm over it. I'm sure she has her reasons. We both seem to get riled up really easily, so a fight breaking out will probably be a common occurrence."

Minato frowned but dropped the subject when Naruto bumped shoulders reassuringly.

"What's your mission tomorrow?"

"Iwa," Naruto exhaled deeply. "I'm going to steal a few important documents and plant a few lies about conspiracies."

"You're going alone?"

"Yeah. A one week trip each way and two weeks sneaking around."

Minato stamped down the urge to object; this was an important mission – one which, out of the Kage Kaigi team, Naruto was best suited to complete.

"I'm coming to get you if we don't hear from you every few days. Don't you dare get rid of my Hiraishin seal on your neck."

"Stop mollycoddling me." Naruto complained, though secretly pleased by the attention. "Does it even work over such a long distance?"

"I'm not sure, but that won't keep me from trying."

The Hunter-nin hung his head in resignation. "Do whatever you want. I doubt I could stop you."

Minato grinned in triumph and roughly ruffled Naruto's hair. "That's right, Naru-chan. Get used to it." An arm naturally found its usual place over Naruto's shoulders. Naruto grumbled at the nickname, wondering when he had stopped seriously protesting it.

Naruto snorted inwardly. It was futile to protest anything Minato did; the man would just repeat the action until you either surrendered or began liking it.

Like the fingers running gently through his hair. He couldn't help the sigh of content that escaped his traitorous lips. Was Minato channeling chakra through those fingers? They were soft and soothing, so much so that he leaned into the touch despite the proud corner of his mind barking at him to shape up.

He hummed blissfully when Minato's warm chakra washed over his body.

"Mmmm…feels good…" He mumbled tiredly.

Minato studied those half-lidded azure eyes with a smile. It was precious times like this when he forgot that Naruto was a jaded Hunter-nin and competent leader. The younger blonde was rarely off guard even if he acted shocked or clumsy, but there were more and more moments between them where he revealed his adorable, unguarded side.

Minato's smile widened when Naruto scrunched his nose endearingly and rubbed his eyes.

"Mina…"

Minato replied by burying his face into Naruto's messy hair.

"I…alarm clock…seven…"

"I've got it," Minato answered, reaching over to set the alarm before shifting closer to the smaller blonde. "Do you want to get under the covers?"

Absently, Naruto pouted in displeasure at the suggestion and shook his head slowly. He raised languid arms to wrap loosely around Minato's waist, holding him in place. Minato chuckled softly and caressed Naruto's sensitive whisker scars with a feather-light touch, delighting in the shiver which ran through the smaller blonde.

"Naru-chan, you're unbelievably cute…" Minato whispered.

Naruto growled weakly and tightened his arms. "…'m not cute."

Minato gently spread chakra from his finger to Naruto's sensitive cheek, watching curiously for his reaction. Naruto shivered again, then sighed contentedly and responded with a little nudge of his own wild chakra.

"Not fair...chakra warm," Naruto almost purred, cheeks heating up as soon as he uttered those words.

'I know, Naruto,' Minato thought with a mental smirk, 'but I never knew I was a tease.'

He felt Naruto's breaths even out and held the precious bundle protectively – or was it possessively – through the night.

* * *

The sun shone through a thin break in the grimy curtains as Akashiori woke for his fifth day in Iwa. On the first day of his infiltration, he had picked out a jerk of a jounin called Hagetaka to study. By the third day of his observation, he was disgusted by how much of an asshole the guy was, but the jounin was placed relatively high in the ranks; he had access to the Tsuchikage's command center as well as the civilian police. And because the man was so foul, many of his colleagues took extra care to avoid him.

Perfect.

Akashiori killed the man without remorse and placed a long-lasting henge on himself with his repaired henge seal tattoos. He moved into Hagetaka's disgusting apartment and took over his job outlined on a messy schedule taped to the refrigerator. The only hard part was acting like a douche. He really felt terrible for the people he had to insult, inwardly wincing at each tearful apology and hateful glare he received. How the hell did the guy live like this?

Akashiori/Hagetaka stomped arrogantly through the Tsuchikage Tower's halls, heading for the archives. Once he managed to slip inside, he headed for the financial records. Skimming quickly through the last three years, he noted that the budget for shinobi affairs had escalated two years ago. He would need to acquire a copy of inventory records, the shinobi training curriculum, and roster of Iwa's active shinobi as well.

The Hunter-nin used a variant of the Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu to create physical clone copies of the documents which he would transfer to real paper later on. It was time to return to insulting people. Later that night, he would visit civilian bars under nondescript disguises to gauge reactions to the controversial information he had planted and maybe start several rumors about a political opposition gathering support in the shadows.

As the second week of his Iwa infiltration – third week of his mission – began, homesickness hit him like a ton of bricks. He sent Shiro to Sandaime-Jijii and Minato every two days to give updates and pass on documents, but something inside him was urging him to return to Konoha.

His Naruto persona missed spending time with Minato and the old man and Kakashi and maybe even Sakumo. He missed passing Iruka and Ibiki and others on the streets. He missed seeing Ichiraku's Teuchi doting on baby Ayame and Uchiha Mikoto proudly pregnant with Itachi.

He really missed Konoha as a whole.

Akashiori threw himself into his mission. He collected legitimate dirt on the Iwa council members, secretly donated money and the incriminating information to the opposition, caused one of the key war strategists to commit suicide (assassinated her), sabotaged several shipments of explosive tags and containment scrolls, and won large amounts of money from several casinos. And this was all done right under the Iwa ANBU's noses.

It was time to pull out.

He trashed Hagetaka's apartment, set the man's decaying body on fire in the bedroom, and wrote derogatory messages on the walls and door. The result looked like a murder by someone who hated Hagetaka's guts and wanted revenge for years of suffering the man put the culprit through.

Relieved at finally begin able to go home, Akashiori snuck out of the village walls in the form of a common eagle. Several miles away, he landed behind a rocky landform to transform back into a casual traveling shinobi, stretching out his sore arms and trying not to ruffle his non-existent feathers.

However useful, he hated flying as a bird. Someday, he was going to figure out how shinobi from the Land of the Sky flew with chakra.

Three days of careful maneuvering later, just before arriving at the Earth Country and Waterfall border, the Konoha Hunter-nin sensed a shinobi approaching rapidly.

_Shit, Iwa Hunter-nin._

Akashiori decreased his chakra output to that of a chuunin. He didn't bother speeding up; that would only prolong the chase and expose his skills to the enemy who would end up reporting back to his Commander. It was best to take care of the guy once and for all.

The Iwa ninja flashed in front of Akashiori, kunai in both hands.

"Foreigner, identify yourself," the Iwa Hunter-nin orderd with no emotion in his voice and dead eyes.

Akashiori frowned. It seemed Hunter-nin everywhere were the same, tortured souls.

"I'm a simple, travelin' ninja," he answered, switching his formal speech to a coarse drawl and gesturing offhandedly to his bulging bag.

"Which village are you affiliated with?"

"Pfft, who wants ta belong ta some dumb village? I'm a free soul!"

The Iwa-nin shifted awkwardly. "What is your business in Earth Country?"

"Duh, I'm travelin'." The traveler rolled his eyes. "Seein' the sights, tastin' the food, sleepin' under the stars – ya know, travelin' stuff."

"I will need to search your bag."

"Wha! But I didn' do anythin'," the traveler exclaimed. "I ain't causin' trouble so lemme go."

"If you resist, I will eliminate you."

"Bastard, what's your problem. Ya got some long stick up your ass."

The Iwa-nin tightened his grip on his kunai. In a blur of movement, he was in front of the trespasser, slicing his neck with a kunai. The head fell to the ground with a disturbing thud.

Then the head and body burst into water.

_Water clone!_ The Iwa-nin jumped back instantly, his eyes flickering side to side in search of the real body.

"_Suiton: Mizurappa (Water Trumpet)!"_

With a loud roar, the traveler shot a large jet of water through his hand. The masked shinobi leapt aside, retaliating with chakra enforced shuriken.

"So you are from Water Country," the Iwa-nin stated while watching his opponent dodge the throwing stars.

Akashiori snorted in his mind at the wrong assumption. "That's right, but it was damn boring there. Water everywhere. I ain't goin' back!"

"You are correct, foreigner. You will die here today."

"_Doton: Kengan no Jutsu (Fist Rock Technique)."_

An arm encased in rock flew at Akashiori, just missing his right thigh. The traveler snapped his hand to extend a whip formed by water. '_Suiton: Suiben'_ was a technique known to Kirigakure hunter-nin, and Akashiori wrapped it around the Iwa-nin deftly, trapping him in the air to prevent him from escaping into the ground.

"_Raiton: Jibashi (Electromagnetic Murder)!"_

Without missing a beat, he channeled waves of lightening through the whip to shock the Iwa-nin. It was the same jutsu Naruto had used on Minato during his first Combat Assessment, but this time he held the jutsu for an entire minute.

As soon as Akashiori released the jutsu, the Iwa Hunter-nin crumbled to the ground.

"_Doton: Domu (Earth Spear)…"_

The masked shinobi muttered, causing chakra to flow through his body and harden his skin to increase his defensive power.

Akashiori tutted. "Are you a rookie? That jutsu is weak against Raiton, and I just fried you with a lightning attack."

"Y-you are more than a simple traveler."

"Finally figured that out? You're a little slow. There's a move I've been itching to try out in a real battle."

"_Raiton: Kuropansa (Black Panther)!"_

Black lightning in the form of a panther charged at the downed Iwa-nin, electrocuting him with potent electricity. A final scream tore out of the Hunter-nin, and he slumped to the ground never to move again.

Akashiori sighed in disappointment. "Too easy." He spread his chakra over a one mile radius to sense any escaping audience members, but when he felt nothing, he looked down at the crackling corpse and snapped his fingers. The body burst into Black Fire, and after several moments, only ashes remained.

"_Doton: Doryuu Taiga (Earth Flow River)."_

He transformed the scorched ground underneath the ashes into mud, erasing any evidence of the Konoha Hunter-nin Corps' secret fire technique. The battle ground looked like the aftermath of a fight between an Iwa shinobi and a Kumo or Kiri shinobi.

Satisfied, Akashiori resumed his travel and finally arrived at Konoha after another four long days of travel. After crossing the wall, Naruto stopped on a rooftop and took a deep breath of the evening air, reveling in the familiar smells. The Konoha-style buildings and the chakra signatures of Konoha shinobi washed away his homesickne…huh? Who the hell is–

"Oomph!"

Someone barreled into him, landing him several feet away on his back. That someone sat on top of him, straddling his hips and grinning down with bright azure eyes and straight white teeth.

"Ughhh…" Naruto groaned at the pain of hitting roof tiles with the weight of a full-grown man on top of him. "Minato, that hurt."

"Welcome home, Naru-chan."

"Are you a dog? Can't you greet me like a normal person?"

Minato's grin widened as he caught sight of a tiny upward twitch on the left corner of stubbornly frowning lips, and although Naruto's face expressed irritation, his eyes were smiling. Minato bent down to set his forehead on Naruto's.

"But that wouldn't show how happy I am to see you."

Naruto sputtered and a light pink dusted his cheeks. "Baka, get off."

Minato climbed off him and helped the embarrassed Hunter-nin to his feet. The ANBU Captain circled the blushing blonde with a critical eye, poking at the rips and scuffs on Naruto's clothing to check for injuries. Naruto looked at his worrywart friend strangely.

"Uhh, remember? I have abnormally fast healing," he pointed out.

Minato faltered, then rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry, I'm just concerned. I know you don't report all if your injuries because of that."

"…thanks," Naruto smiled gratefully, still trying to adjust to having so much attention showered on him. "Thanks for caring. It's good to be back." He gave one of Minato's golden eartails a shy tug before snatching his hand back.

Minato quirked his lips in amusement. "Are you reporting to Hokage-sama now?"

"No, Jijii's letting me rest first. I already gave him everything through Shiro, so all I need to do is write the formal report," Naruto replied, rolling his fatigued shoulders.

"I really missed this village," he confessed quietly. Then he turned to Minato and gave him a foxy grin. "I'm also really hungry. You're treating me to Ichiraku!"

The Minato laughed as his worries for Naruto's safety melted away.

* * *

**A/N:** Blushes and smiles and plot mixed in! Did you like it?

Next chapter: Kushina & Naruto interaction; **any suggestions for more characters?**

_July 12, 2012_


	15. All Mine

**A/N:** This chapter is dedicated to **ChrissyCrimson** whose birthday is today, July 20th. Happy birthday!

Thank you for all of your suggestions for new characters. I'll keep them in mind as I write the next few chapters :)

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, **shounen-ai, timetravel.

* * *

**Warning:** Mentions of rape in this chapter. Please read at your own discretion.

* * *

**Chapter 15: All Mine**

Naruto blurred over rooftops, heading to the Forest of Death for a long overdue survival training session. With Minato and both Hatakes away on missions and not being well acquainted with anyone else in the village other than the Sandaime who always shoved dreaded paperwork at him whenever he visited, Naruto had to resort to his old training buddies – giant scorpions – for some fun.

The scorpions had been the unwilling victims of his crazy training regimen during the year after his torture when he could barely stand the sight of humans. The survival training session he devised was simple. He would jump into a colony of scorpions, make a loud bang, and try to stay alive for several days. Fun, right? It was a kill or be killed arrangement, but Naruto had yet to die while their population had taken a dip.

_Whatever. They were getting cocky anyway._

Naruto was about to perform a Shunshin across Training Ground Thirty-Seven when a dark blob caught his eye. What came into view caused him to snort and change directions.

"Hey, Shikaku. How're the clouds?"

The man's half-lidded eyes flitted to the approaching blonde before returning to stare at the sky. Shikaku raised an arm for the laziest salute Naruto had ever seen.

"Good afternoon, Aka-san. The clouds slept in today."

Naruto lay down next to him and grinned up at the cloudless sky.

"I keep telling you, call me Naruto. We're the same age; it's creepy."

"Why bother? They're both three syllables. It's troublesome to switch back and forth between meetings."

"If you don't, I'll fire you."

Shikaku raised an eyebrow. "But you wouldn't."

"I wouldn't?"

"You hired me because, somehow, you know how I operate."

Naruto said nothing.

"Tch, I don't care. Just don't give me any more work. As it is, you've already cut my cloud watching time by forty-six percent."

Naruto let out a light laugh. "It's going that well with Fujiwara Transport, then? Maybe I should get Sandaime-Jijii to appoint you as the new Jounin Commander. I have full confidence in you."

Shikaku turned his head sideways to look at the Hunter-nin flatly. "If you do, I'll slash Konoha's instant ramen imports." He smirked when Naruto looked back at him with growing horror reflected on his face.

"Alright, alright," Naruto grumbled under his breath. "No Jounin Commander for another few years."

"Not until my kid turns six."

"Why six?"

"That's when I'm sending them to Academy. It'd be a pain to deal with raising a kid and being Jounin Commander at the same time."

The blonde snorted. "Then get on with the baby making, you lazy ass. I want you taking over six years from now."

They watched a tiny wisp of cloud floating across the otherwise clear expanse of blue.

Naruto broke the silence. "Do you want to spar with me?"

Shikaku twisted his lips into a grimace. "Minato's out of the village?" Naruto nodded solemnly, looking as if his world had ended.

"No," Shikaku rejected firmly, "I've seen you two fight. I don't want to get beat up by either of you crazy blondes. Besides, you don't know medical jutsu."

"Minato is starting to teach me," Naruto defended.

"The answer is no. Go spy on the council or something."

"That's Inokazu-san's job."

"Then don't let me hold you back from the Forest of Death. I'm sure the hyenas or scorpions would love to join you."

"Scorpions," Naruto affirmed, impressed at Shikaku's deduction.

From the corner of his left eye, he caught a flicker of red who could only belong to one person. "Shikaku, what can you tell me about Uzumaki Kushina?"

Shikaku shuddered involuntarily. "Be careful around her," he warned. "We were in the same Academy class. She's scarier than my girlfriend."

Naruto snorted in laughter. "Too late…I don't get why, but she already hates me. We only met for twenty minutes, at most."

Shikaku glanced at him oddly. "I'm not sure if we should be following you into war."

"How is that related?"

"You can be an oblivious idiot sometimes," Shikaku answered with a sigh. "Now I wonder if Iwa is actually our ally and Suna our real enemy."

Naruto glared at the sky. "What happened to respecting your superiors?"

"I control ramen imports," the Nara answered simply.

"Shikaku! Just tell me why she hates me."

"I doubt she _hates_ you. She dislikes you because Minato spends all his time with you," Shikaku informed the Hunter-nin. "She used to be able to track him down pretty easily, but in the last few months, she's had to jump through hoops to find him."

"That's the same thing someone else told me," Naruto said. "But how is that my fault?"

Shikaku rolled his eyes. "How should I know?"

"You have a girlfriend."

"Doesn't mean I'm any wiser about women. They're too much of a bother to work out."

He grunted when Naruto punched him in the shoulder. "Fine, fine. She'd rather be mad at you than at Minato, who she's crazy about. I answered your questions, so go talk to her."

Naruto stood reluctantly and brushed grass of his clothes. "She's scary."

"Hmm, you two are similar in some aspects," the genius muttered thoughtfully. "Almost like family. Uzumaki and Uzuhara…"

The blonde froze at the comment, unnoticed by Shikaku who had closed his eyes. He'd have to be careful. That keen mind was a double-edged sword.

"Anyway, good luck with her."

"Thanks. Good talking to you. See you at the next meeting if I survive."

Shikaku peeked from one eye. "Can we hold it at my house? It's a pain to walk to the Hokage's Tower."

Naruto laughed. "Bring that up with Jijii. I don't choose the venue."

"Then come over to play a few games of Shogi and Go sometime."

"Uhh…" Naruto felt a strong push from Kyuubi his mindscape.

'Kyuu, you want to play?'

'_It will be a thousand times better than playing against an idiot like you. For the first time in decades, I have the opportunity to face an opponent with intelligence.'_

"Well, sure," Naruto answered gladly even as he sent the demon fox a mental pout. With a last wave, he ran after the fiery redhead's fading figure.

Shikaku watched him leave, feeling rather sorry for the guy. He decided blondes and redheads were equally the most troublesome of them all, and he couldn't be more thankful that Yoshino, despite being bossy and nagging, was a brunette.

* * *

"…aki-san!"

Kushina was pulled out of her thoughts by a voice calling from behind.

"Uzumaki-san!"

Speak of the devil, the person she was just contemplating ran up to her. Kushina smoothed her face and continued walking as the man fell in step with her.

He greeted her with a bright grin.

"Uzumaki-san, could I speak with you?" The one named Uzuhara Naruto asked politely and maybe a little awkwardly. She eyed him discreetly, taking in his casual outfit and nicked-up hitai-ate tied around his arm. He seemed energetic, laid-back, and apprehensive all rolled into one, though she couldn't fathom how he pulled it off.

"You're speaking now," Kushina answered curtly. Sensing his energy deflate and apprehension rise, she couldn't help but feel a little smug.

"Um…" He paused and fidgeted. "Uhh…I'm Naruto. It's, um, nice to meet you…"

Kushina almost laughed at his awkwardness; the poor guy was all nervousness now, his grin replaced by downturned lips.

"I already know who you are," she replied as she remembered why Uzuhara infuriated her. Ever since he appeared, she could rarely find Minato, and when they did spend time together, usually while Uzuhara was away on missions, he wouldn't stop talking about the jounin.

"So…how are you today?"

She twisted her unbidden smile into a grimace. "I'm fine."

"Uhh…nice weather huh."

Kushina had to bite the inside of her cheek to stop another smile.

"I'm really sorry about breaking into your house," he rushed out. "Are you feeling better?"

She arched an eyebrow, unseen by Uzuhara as he stared down the path they were walking. "That was weeks ago. Of course I'm better."

"Oh right, sorry." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "My sense of time gets scrambled whenever I go on missions."

The awkward silence returned.

Kushina huffed impatiently. She stopped and turned to him, placing a hand on her hip. "Uzuhara, what do you want to talk to me about?"

The blonde visibly winced at the tone.

"Well…um…" Uzuhara trailed off. "I want to ask you why you hate me…"

"And why do you think I hate you." Oh kami, making this kid uncomfortable could be her new favorite hobby.

He shifted his weight. "You seem really angry at me, but I don't know what I did. Someone told me it's because of Minato, but I can't really figure out how to fix it. I know he's your friend. He told me you're really cool. I think you're pretty cool too, so I want to be your friend too. And Minato says you're really good at Fuuinjutsu. He also said you're really strong. He–"

"Uzuhara! You're rambling."

Uzuhara shrank back like a child who had been chastised. What was so great about this guy? He had no backbone and seemed useless. There was no way he could have become a jounin, much less tie Minato in a fight.

"Are you really shinobi?" She questioned.

He tilted his head to the side quizzically. "Of course I am."

"You look like a wuss. Tell me again, what do you do?"

"I'm a Tokubetsu Jounin in Infiltration and Reconnaissance. I've been for years," he answered, affronted.

"You should stop spreading lies about tying Minato. I can't imagine a wimp like you could stand a chance at getting a single hit on him." Kushina frowned inwardly. That was pretty harsh even for her, especially since he wasn't an enemy shinobi or an asshole.

"I'm not lying! The first time, I electrocuted him, and the second time I escaped Hiraishin," he growled.

_Hm, so this guy can fight back. But, no one can beat me in arguments._

"It was Combat Assessment. Obviously, he wasn't going all out." Kushina flipped her long hair.

Uzuhara scowled. "It wasn't a life or death battle, but we were fighting seriously," he retorted. "I can fight you now to prove I'm good."

"Psh, I'm a _real_ jounin. You're not worth wasting time on," she glared down the blonde who was half a head taller than her.

"You wouldn't know unless you try. Or are you scared you'd lose?" He taunted.

"There's no way I'd lose against a baka like you. You'd probably lose against fresh genin," she taunted back.

This scene strongly reminded her of a quarrel between pre-school children… Why did he seem to bring out the worst in her?

"Teme, I'm not a baka!" He pointed at her rudely. "I'm smarter than you."

"You've got to be kidding me. You didn't even make it to Academy." She stuck her chin out mockingly. "I bet you failed three times."

He opened his mouth to snap back, but no sound came out.

Kushina's jaw dropped open. "What? For real? Hahahaha! You failed to get in three times? That's why you didn't go to Academy?"

"No…"

"I doubt anyone else has ever failed three times." She snickered.

Uzuhara growled. "Who cares about failing Academy. I made it to jounin anyway. I'll have you know, I could evade ANBU since I was seven."

"Baka, stop lying!" She snapped.

"I'm not!" He snapped back.

"Then prove it."

He looked at her blankly.

She smirked triumphantly. "You can't, can you?" His lack of reaction only strengthened her resolve.

"Uzuhara, I want you to stay away from Minato. I've never seen you around before, and I don't trust you. For all we know, you could be a spy," Kushina lashed out angrily. "You claim you're part of Infiltration, and I know you've lied multiple times already. That only backs up my suspicions. Stop wasting his time with your problems."

Instead of retorting, Uzuhara's face fell, eyes dulled, and his shoulders slumped. He looked utterly devastated. A sizeable portion of her heart wanted to take back her cutting words and comfort him until his bright grin returned, but no, this was the kid who was taking the love of her life away from her; she would fight tooth and nail to keep Minato by her side.

Uzuhara raised his face to the dark clouds rolling in. The last of the fading sunlight illuminated his face, highlighting the shadows in his weary expression. He stuffed a hand in his pouch around his waist and spoke lifelessly without looking at her.

"I'm really sorry for wasting your time." An umbrella appeared in his hand and was shoved quickly into hers. _Unsealing with no lag time!_ "Here, just in case. There will be a rain shower in five minutes. Um bye."

Before she recovered from her surprise at his Fuuin prowess, he had already vanished in a silent, cloudless Shunshin.

Kushina's mind was as stormy as the sky as she stared at the umbrella which was colored just as blue as his azure eyes when he first greeted her. She had said her piece and defended her position in Minato's life. Uzuhara had probably been scared away, which was her aim from the beginning…

…Then, why did she feel so _awful_?

* * *

Minato walked around the village aimlessly, not sure what to make of the situation. It had been half a week since he returned from Team 9's week-long assassination mission, but he hadn't seen hide nor hair of Naruto. Hokage-sama had confirmed he wasn't away on a mission, and he had scoured the Forest of Death with no success. Naruto wasn't in his room or at the ANBU training facility, ANBU training grounds, or regular training grounds, and both Kakashi and Sakumo-senpai were still on their respective missions. He had even checked Ichiraku for every meal, including breakfast.

That was where he was headed now for dinner. He was a little disappointed that Naruto hadn't welcomed him home, but after this many days, he knew something was very wrong; Naruto only holed himself away when he couldn't deal with people on top of emotional turmoil.

Minato ducked into the ramen stand, scanning for golden hair but was disappointed. However, he saw bright hair beside four empty bowls. He sat down next to Kushina, glad to see his longtime friend.

"Hey, Kushina," he greeted. "What flavor is that?"

She raised her head in surprise and grinned. "Soy with sliced pork."

"Sounds good. Teuji-san, can I have the same?"

"One soy with sliced pork, coming right up!"

"Teuji-san, has he been by today?"

The question caught Kushina's attention immediately.

"Sorry, Namikaze-san." The Ichiraku owner shook his head as he prepared the noodles.

Minato sighed heavily, settling his cheek on the counter dejectedly. "It's been four days. I'm worried about him. Last time he disappeared like this, he was in pretty bad shape."

"Minato, who are you talking about?"

"Naruto." He raised his eyes. "He's avoiding me."

"Uzuhara? Why do you think that?"

"Since he doesn't really know anyone else, he only masks this chakra when he doesn't want to be found by me," Minato explained. "And when he hides, it's impossible to sense him."

Surprised, Kushina's eyebrows rose. "He can mask himself from you?"

Minato nodded gravely. "He has the best chakra control in Konoha. Better than the ANBU Commander and Hokage-sama."

"No way, I don't believe it."

He raised his head when his bowl of ramen was offered to him, but instead of digging in, he picked at the noodles. "He's good. He's always training one thing or another, and it's all for Konoha. Sometimes, I wish he'd take a break so he doesn't burn out."

Kushina's hand had stopped, and the awful feeling that had been stewing inside her for days grew to a boil. She identified it as regret.

"But…just last week, he…he was such a pushover!" She tried to compare the Uzuhara whom she had verbally crushed with the Uzuhara Minato described and came up with two completely different people.

"Last week?" Minato turned to her in an instant. "Was he okay? Did he seem strange or upset?"

She didn't answer.

"Kushina?" He furrowed his brow.

She cringed inwardly. She had never been able to lie to him, and she feared his reaction to the less-than-friendly exchange between her and Uzuhara.

"We talked a bit last week," she said hesitantly. Minato urged her to continue with an encouraging nod. Seeing his eagerness, she glowered even while knowing the anger was petty and unjustified. "We had a disagreement. For some reason, we don't seem to see eye to eye about anything."

He looked at her, overflowing with doubt. "He's almost never confrontational unless the other party provokes him first…"

Minato's eyes narrowed. "Kushina…what did you say?" He asked softly. Dangerously. In that voice she found so bewitching, but frightening now that it was turned against her.

Her anger faltered. "I told him I didn't trust him. I told him to stop wasting your time with his problems."

Minato froze. "You told him to stop wasting my time?" This time his voice was faint. A moment later, he dropped his head in his hands.

She watched him anxiously. "What?"

He clenched his hair in frustration. "Wasting people's time – that's one of the things he fears and despises most. He doesn't think he deserves positive attention unless he offers something of equal or higher value in return. When I said he's had it worse than you, I meant it. Naruto's childhood could be considered appalling, and his teen years could be described as horrific. It took months to get him to open up to people." _To me._

"If he's vanished for a week, he must have regressed." His shoulders slumped, identical to how Uzuhara's had slumped a week ago.

Kushina was flooded with guilt as she recalled the younger blonde's crushed face. The idea that she had torn apart someone who was already damaged made her sick. Acting that way towards _anyone_ was inexcusable.

"If you can't find him, why don't you call him to you?" She suggested.

Minato looked at her skeptically. "If he's hiding from me, he's not going to show up."

"Make it seem like a distress call."

"A distress call…?" His eyes lit up, and he pulled her into a quick hug. "That could work! He would never ignore a distress call."

Minato practically inhaled his noodles, and when finished, he paid for both his and the blushing redhead's meals before rushing out of the stand.

"Minato, let me go with you," Kushina pleaded. "I want to apologize."

He looked conflicted for a second but nodded and took off over the rooftops. As she struggled to keep up with his hasty pace, she squashed down the jealousy which threatened to rise again. If Uzuhara's condition was as precarious as Minato said, her petty feelings had no place here.

Kushina was surprised at their destination. At her questioning look, Minato explained one of Naruto's odd quirks.

"He considers the Forest of Death his personal backyard and playground. This is probably his favorite place to train."

"You think he's in there now?" Kushina asked, incredulous.

"No, I already checked today. If he was here, he would be blasting something."

"Then why are we…?"

"As strange as it sounds, he'll feel least threatened here." Minato frowned to himself. "Ugh, I shouldn't say that like he's an animal."

He compressed all of his anxiety, confusion, and conflict from the last four days into a tight ball and released it all at once with a small burst of chakra.

"Are you sure that was strong enough?" Kushina asked skeptically after barely feeling a pulse.

"He knows my signature. He'll be able to sense that," Minato said confidently.

The air was tense as they waited. Sounds from the Forest of Death behind them grew louder as the sky began to turn orange from the setting sun.

In a sudden displacement of air, Naruto appeared in front of Minato, hair messier than usual and expression frantic.

"Minato!" Naruto's fearful eyes zoomed in on his friend, and then he was patting the larger blonde, searching everywhere for injuries. His hands finally rose to cup Minato's face, his right thumb gently stroking the left cheek.

"What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Naruto pressed urgently for answers. He brushed aside Minato's bangs to search his eyes. "Did something happen?"

Minato raised his hands to grasp the smaller ones on his face and lowered them slowly. "I was worried about _you_."

"Huh…?"

Then Naruto snapped his head to the side at a barely audible gasp. "Uzumaki-san…?"

"You're Hunter-nin!" Kushina stared at the uniform and the mask pushed to the side of his head.

Naruto's eyes, now filled with confusion and a hint of betrayal, snapped back to Minato's. He wrenched his hands out and stumbled back. "Minato, what's going on?"

Minato groaned inwardly, regretting the decision to allow Kushina to follow. "I've been trying to find you for days, and this was the only way I could reach you."

"So you tricked me?" Betrayal gained ground.

"I'm sorry for using this method." Minato looked at him remorsefully. "But I'm not sorry for searching you out. I was worried, just like how you were worried about me earlier."

"Worried?" Naruto stepped back unsteadily. "You shouldn't be. Why aren't you hanging out with your team or Uzumaki-san? Or your friends at Headquarters? I overheard Lemur is looking for you for a spar."

Minato took several steps forward. "But I want to spend time with you."

"But, but I only cause you trouble." Naruto backed away some more.

"Whether it's trouble or not is for me to decide." Minato matched the steps.

"Think about all the times you were with me that you should have spent with Uzumaki-san." Naruto glanced quickly at the Forest to his left.

"I'm fully capable of deciding who to spend time with," Minato said, taking another small step closer. "I still do spend time with her and with my other friends."

"I'm stealing their time with you." Naruto insisted. His eyes flitted between Minato, the Forest, and the village. Minato recognized it as a sure sign that Naruto's skittishness had returned, and that he was about to run.

"Well, _I_ think time spent with you is worthwhile."

Naruto shrank back. "But I'm not even supposed to be here… You're supposed to…" His eyes flickered to Kushina before glazing over.

As predicted, Naruto performed a Shunshin, but Minato had been prepared and activated Naruto's Hiraishin seal. No Shunshin could outrun a Hiraishin. The Hunter-nin only managed to travel several feet before he was caught from behind.

He flinched violently as arms grabbed hold of him.

"N-no, don't!"

Minato froze at the flinch. Naruto hadn't reacted negatively to his touch in at least four months, since Suna. He took pleasure in the fact that his touch and chakra were sources of comfort, whether they blanketed Naruto's entire body or simply nudged a shoulder. It never failed to make him smile when Naruto reluctantly or unconsciously sought contact.

Whatever Kushina said had caused him to retreat back into himself, exposing that he hadn't fully moved past his trauma.

Naruto struggled harder as he was pulled against the strong body, unable to break free. His spiral mask slipped to the grass, unnoticed and forgotten.

"Don't touch me." He began to shake when he felt phantom hands crawling all over him. "Let me go." The shakes turned into spasms as images of leering faces flashed through his mind. Naruto clawed desperately at the arms trapping him. "Help me. Someone, save me. Please…anyone…" His voice grew weaker and weaker as he fell deeper into despair; his chakra cried along with his eyes.

"Shit, relapse!" The larger blonde swore. Hoping to at least quell the spasms, he coated his front and Naruto's back with his own chakra. "Hey, Naruto, breath slowly," he said clearly. "You're safe in Konoha. It's evening, and we're standing next to Training Ground Forty-Four. I've got you. Naruto, I'll protect you, so come back."

Naruto shuddered and stilled, recognizing the signature. "Minato. Minato. Minato," he chanted as if to convince himself of the other blonde's existence. "You're here. What are you doing here?"

"We've been here the entire time."

"What about them?" Terror and urgency saturated his voice.

"Who?"

"_Them_. Quick, you have to get out before they come back." Naruto twisted for a glimpse of Minato. "They'll hurt you."

"They're gone. We got rid of them all." Minato tried to recall everything the Hunter-nin had shared about his imprisonment.

"_ANBU?_" Naruto snarled.

The ANBU Captain berated himself for unintentionally hinting at the people Naruto hated. "It's over with. A long time ago," he reassured. Minato turned him around in his arms to look intently into dilated eyes. The smaller blonde shook his head, trying to decide what was reality. He saw both the cave and Minato, or was it Minato in the cave? "We're out of the cave?"

"That's right. We're free. Look at the open sky."

Naruto whimpered, sinking down to the ground. Minato dropped with him, arranging the Hunter-nin to face him between spread legs, drawing him closer with an arm around the waist. His free hand rose to tangle fingers into locks of soft hair, pressing the smaller blonde's cheek to his shoulder.

Feeling the steady heartbeat under his ear, Naruto wrapped his arms around Minato, holding onto him like a lifeline. "I'm tired, Minato. I'm tired of being alone," he mumbled. "I wish you were mine…"

Minato's heart warmed at Naruto's selfish desire. "I'll be yours if you want," he replied softly. "Whenever you want."

But Naruto shook his head as much as he could without lifting his head from Minato's shoulder. "You can't be."

"Why not?" Minato pulled the other blonde closer.

"Because I don't like to share." Naruto hid his face in the crook of Minato's neck in shame.

"Hmm?" Minato glanced down at the top of the blond head in confusion. "You won't have to… Why do you think you have to share?"

Naruto staunchly remained silent.

Minato sighed heavily, looking up and only then remembering Kushina. He looked at her apologetically but immediately turned his attention back to the shaking form in his arms. He whispered words of comfort – soothing words describing Naruto of how important the Hunter-nin was to him and to his few friends. "Remember how I tackled you when you returned from your mission? Remember how I waited to learn new jutsu so we could learn them together? Remember how Kakashi likes to tease you? And how Hokage-sama calls you to his office for no reason other than to chat?"

"Paperwork," Naruto grumbled quietly. "He makes me do his paperwork."

Minato chuckled. It was a relief to see some of Naruto's personality return. "He could have asked his personal assistant to do it, but he asked you instead."

Naruto snorted. "That's because his personal assistant is a snobbish idiot. He thinks he owns the place, but in reality, he gets Jijii's coffee wrong half the time. Jijii is going to fire him next week; the moron barely lasted a month."

"Is he going to hire you next?" Minato continued the conversation which seemed to take Naruto's mind off of his past and insecurities.

"I turned down the offer. It's a crappy job. I'd never do it."

"Would you do it if I was Hokage?" Minato joked.

Naruto raised his head and looked at the future Yondaime strangely. "I'd rather be the personal guard."

Minato laughed. "Alright, I'll hold you to that."

He pressed a light kiss to Naruto's temple. 'Sealed with a kiss,' Minato thought in a moment of extreme sappiness. He felt a blush creep into his cheeks and was thankful for the waning sunlight.

Kushina stood stiffly to the side, watching the scene with mixed feelings. It felt as if an unseen force was squeezing her heart. She couldn't tell how much of the pain was from seeing Naruto caught in his personal terror and how much was from seeing Minato hold him so tenderly. While she had never received anything more than hugs, Naruto had received a kiss. _A kiss._ The ease at which Minato placed the kiss showed that it wasn't the first time; her woman's intuition told her so.

She exhaled slowly to collect her thoughts and think objectively.

She failed.

The love of her life, who she'd been in love with for years, who she believed would never notice anyone because of his obliviousness, who she had been trying to catch the attention of, who had been slowly warming up to her, was holding someone else in his arms, and a man at that. This wasn't baseless jealousy anymore; someone else was quickly occupying Minato's thoughts and heart, pushing whatever portion she had to the back corner.

The worst part was that Uzuhara didn't know the effect he had on Minato. She couldn't even get angry at the younger man, only at the situation, because he was innocent, even encouraging Minato to spend more time with her. She could tell that he would be the greatest friend anyone could ever wish for and had the potential to be one of her best friends – if only he wasn't competition.

Kushina squared her shoulders. There was no way she was going to back off. This was _her_ future husband. It wasn't her style to roll over and hand him off to someone else. 'To a _man_,' she pursed her lips disdainfully. As long as Minato remained oblivious, she was still in the running.

"Uzuhara-san, are you okay?"

Naruto stiffened and whipped around. He tried to scramble to his feet but was held down by Minato's stubborn arms.

"Minato…"

The older blonde made a low, unhappy sound but released him after a final squeeze. Minato rose to stand at the Hunter-nin's left, resting his right arm across the back of lean shoulders as if to protect him from future harm by Kushina.

"I'm sorry you had to see that." Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "I promise I'm sane most of the time."

"Don't worry, I understand." Kushina managed a strained smile, which was better than glowering at Minato's thumb lazily caressing the base of Naruto's neck.

Naruto looked at her gratefully. "How about I treat you to ramen sometime? As an apology."

Kushina started, remembering why she was there in the beginning. "Uzuhara-san, I'm the one who should apologize."

"Apologize?" Naruto's expression was honestly bewildered. "For what?"

Kushina tilted her head, confused that he seemed to have forgotten their argument a week ago. "For all the things I said. They were rude, offensive, and hurtful…"

"It's alright," Naruto interrupted with a shrug. "You had your reasons, and what you said is the truth."

"But!"

He cut off her apology with a wave of his hand, and an idea for matchmaking popped into his head. "We can treat each other to ramen for both our apologies and call it even."

Kushina looked baffled as she tried to grasp his over-simplified logic.

"Please?" Naruto watched her expectantly with large eyes which seemed to glow warmly in the dim evening. She couldn't help but compare him to a stray puppy waiting for her to take him home. How could she ever deny those eyes_? !_

As soon as she agreed, he gave her a blinding grin. "And since we cancel each other out, Minato will pay for both of us." He tugged fondly on one of Minato's eartails.

Minato made to protest, but at Naruto's hopeful expression – and those large, large eyes – all complaints shriveled and died. "How about I pay for half?" He asked weakly, trying to salvage some of his next paycheck.

"Awesome! Half-off ramen!" Naruto gave him an almost loving smile and tugged again.

Minato melted; he'd happily fork over two paychecks for that smile.

* * *

"Come on, Minato, you're slow," Naruto complained as pulled on Minato's hand. The ANBU Captain followed unenthusiastically, dragging his feet to delay the Hunter-nin.

"Slow down. He's not going anywhere for at least a week," Minato said, half of his attention was on the smaller hand gripping his and the other half on his ire. They were on their way to get ice cream until Naruto changed direction without warning

"But I haven't seen him for _two_ weeks_._"

Minato glared darkly as the Hatake residence came into view.

Naruto whooped and dashed forward when he saw a figure sweeping the front path.

"Kakashi-kuuun!"

Mini-Kakashi looked up in horror as a blond-haired blur swept him off his feet and twirled him around.

"I missed you, brat." Naruto dangled Kakashi by hands under armpits. He admired the boy with a wide grin and mischievous eyes.

"Baka, put me down!"

Naruto pouted. "Didn't you miss me at all?"

"No. I enjoyed the peace and quiet as I slit the sleeping yakuza's throat."

"Awww, that's so mean."

"Well, _I_ missed you," a deep voice whispered into his ear.

Naruto jumped in surprise and fell forward, dropping Kakashi on his bottom. Before the blonde could fall on top of the little prodigy, a strong arm caught him around the waist.

"Careful, Naruto, I can't have you falling on my son." The arm pulled him back against a hard body and lips brushed the top of his ear.

Naruto gasped, and fingers dug into Sakumo's forearm. He began to tremble almost unnoticeably but nails digging into the arm were blaring signs of distress. Naruto tried to tell himself this was Hatake Sakumo and not one of his torturers, but their position reminded him of Captor Number 3 who favored taking him from behind. The humiliation exacted to him with each touch made him sob and drown in self-loathing, but the unwelcome pleasure mixed with pain overwhelmed his broken mind with delirious arousal. The pressure of the calloused hand was _just right, _and the pleasure was so repulsive but _felt_ _so good_. The man loved to make the unwilling blonde exploded with a strangled–

"Naruto!"

His eyes snapped open.

"Naruto," an urgent voice sounded from in front of him.

Minato's concerned face came into focus. He couldn't control his shallow breaths. When had he slipped to the ground?

"Mina…to…" he rasped out. "W-what happened?"

"You had a flashback."

Naruto sobbed once. His hands shot out to grab Minato's wrists. "Minato, stay with me. Hold me."

Minato moved forward on his knees. "Are you sure? I don't think I should touch you."

"_Please_."

"…Alright." Minato gathered his shaking friend into his arms, cradling him gently against his chest with his left arm under knees and right arm around shoulders which suddenly seemed small and fragile.

"I hate myself," Naruto told him quietly. "I'm weak. I've turned into the monster everyone said I was. I tried hard to be human, Minato, but when you have demons in you, you become one too." He met Minato's gaze and flickered his eyes red. "My body may be human, but my mind doesn't consider myself one of your kind."

Minato didn't recoil from the smoldering red, but he narrowed his eyes disapprovingly when Naruto called himself a monster.

"I don't consider you weak or a monster or a demon." He spoke quickly before Naruto could interject. "I think you're strong and kind. I haven't seen any evidence of you being a monster."

"But you don't know! And remember when I killed in cold blood?"

"I don't care. I will _never_ hate you." Minato stared unwaveringly at Naruto, trying to make him believe. "Doesn't my opinion hold any weight?"

Naruto looked at him skeptically but nodded with small relief. Suddenly, awareness of his surroundings returned, and he mentally groaned. How many times had this happened already? If he kept making a fool out of himself in front of everyone, no one would ever respect him again. He'd broken down in front of every single person he was acquainted with in this timeline except Shikaku and Inokazu-san, and the mind walker already knew about his screwed up head. The genius would probably figure it out soon enough.

He stood shakily and apologized to the Hatakes, rubbing the back of his head in obvious discomfort and embarrassment. However, what Kakashi said next made him chuckle.

"Dad, you're officially an idiot," the boy said blandly. "You're sleeping in the doghouse tonight."

Sakumo winced and turned to Naruto and Minato who sent him a withering glare as he pulled the smaller blonde closer.

"I apologize. It seems I never learn…" Sakumo trailed off in uncharacteristic awkwardness but winced again when Kakashi kicked him in the calf to continue. "Is there anything I can do to make up for this?"

"Uhh, well." Naruto furrowed his brow. "It wasn't really your fault, but if you're offering… We were going to get ice cream before this. You could treat us?"

Kakashi palmed his face. "Niisan, you're an idiot too. You're supposed to ask him for something like a plot of land or a clan secret."

"What would I do with those?"

"…Nevermind," Kakashi rolled his eyes in exasperation at Naruto's clueless expression. "Let's just go get ice cream."

As they walked into the village proper, Sakumo observed Naruto yanking on Kakashi's gravity-defying hair, wondering why after four months the blonde still couldn't stand his touch even when he made certain to touch him at least once each time they met. He turned to Minato who was watching his friend like an over-protective mother hen.

"Minato, what am I doing wrong?"

The ANBU Captain's shoulders tensed. "You can guess some of his background. He has to reach out to you," he answered ambiguously.

They walked in silence the rest of the way, both occupied by thoughts of the enigmatic Hunter-nin. Just outside the ice cream shop, Minato paused and advised the older man threateningly:

"Don't touch him."

_Or else._

Once the door closed behind Minato, Sakumo burst out laughing. The younger man had pretty much laid claim to Naruto and told him to back off or suffer death. The kid probably didn't realize the true meaning behind his own words.

In that moment, Sakumo conceded defeat.

He entered the shop with a light heart, ready to treat both Naruto and Minato to the most extravagant desserts on the menu. He walked up to the older blonde and clapped him on the back playfully.

"He's all yours," Sakumo whispered for Minato's ears only.

* * *

'He's all yours.'

Sakumo had spoken with a strange glint in his eyes which he had no idea how to interpret.

As the two blondes strolled towards ANBU Headquarters, Minato watched Naruto enjoy his ice cream. The smaller blonde had surprisingly opted for a simple cone with three scoops of strawberry, while Minato had chosen two scoops – strawberry cheesecake and mint chocolate chip.

'Of course he's all mine,' his mind supplied hesitantly. 'And maybe a little bit of Kakashi's,' he amended.

He watched in rapture as a pink tongue slipped out and dragged up the cold treat.

Naruto turned to Minato and smiled blissfully – not a wide smile, but just a slight lift of the corners of his lips and a twinkle in his sky blue eyes.

It was one he had never seen before, and Minato added it to the collection of Naruto's smiles memorized in his head. With each new smile, he learned more about his friend and the things that made him happy.

"Minato, aren't you going to eat your ice cream?"

The older blonde was pulled back to reality as Naruto appeared right in front of him.

"It's already starting to melt."

"Oh."

Naruto made a small sound of approval in the back of his throat as Minato gave it a few licks and a bite.

"Is strawberry your favorite flavor?"

"Yup," Naruto replied, "I always get it."

"Have you ever tried strawberry cheesecake?"

The Hunter-nin tilted his head to the side in a way that oddly looked more adorable than usual.

"Nope, can I try yours?"

Minato's brain screeched to a halt. "S-sure." He extended his arm in a daze as Naruto came closer.

The smaller blonde used his right hand to cover Minato's left hand holding the cone and nibbled the top scoop, followed by a quick flick of the tongue which overlapped half of where Minato had licked previously. The ANBU Captain felt heat pool in his body.

"Mmmmm…" Naruto closed his eyes to savor the flavor. "That's really good. Do you want some of mine?"

Minato's eyes followed the offered strawberry ice cream. "Yes, please," he said in a voice that was all velvet. He wrapped his right hand around the smaller blonde's left in a firm but gentle grasp and deliberately leaned forward instead of pulling the cone to him.

Naruto's breath hitched as Minato took a slow bite, the older blonde's pair of intense eyes just inches away, locked on his own widened pair. The action was almost sensual, and Naruto suddenly noticed for the first time why so many girls fought for his attention.

The man was deathly attractive.

Naruto swallowed hard. He realized his hand was still curled around Minato's hand and cone, but he couldn't find the strength to avert his gaze or move his hand.

Finally, when Minato pulled away, breaking the visual connection, Naruto could move again and immediately released his grip on the older man, exhaling the breath which had stuck in his throat.

"Thank you," Minato said with a kind smile. He reluctantly let go of Naruto's hand, allowing his fingers to linger a moment longer than necessary. He raised those fingers to rest on the side of the smaller blonde's jaw and pressed a chakra-covered thumb to his whisker scars. He chuckled inaudibly when Naruto's eyes glazed over with a wave of pleasure.

"That was delicious, Naru-chan. Let's do this again sometime. Next time, I want you to try strawberry shortcake." Naruto absently hummed his agreement, barely comprehending the words as the thumb drew idle circles on his sensitive cheek.

Minato leaned down to lightly bump noses.

"Sakumo-senpai is right." Warm breaths ghosted across Naruto's lips which were still swollen from sucking on the ice cream. Minato released a little more chakra to his thumb, a pleased smile forming on his face when Naruto shivered and arched against his chest. Minato tilted the smaller blonde's chin upwards and kissed him on the tingling cheek his thumb just vacated.

"You're all mine."

* * *

**A/N:** Possessive, protective, and sensual Minato. Like it?

Next chapter: Plot progression; short appearance of one of my favorite characters (can you guess who?)

_July 20, 2012_


	16. Addiction

**A/N:** Umm, so, this story got reported for the rape :'( So…there's a chance that FFn may delete this story. I went back and toned down the details, but I don't know how they make their decisions.

Almost decided of take a break from writing, but reading and replying to your reviews made me feel a lot better. I won't stop, but updates might slow down for other reasons: I just got a new job at an awesome company (yay!) which will have much longer hours (boo!), meaning less free time to write (even more boo!).

Thank you, reviewers, for your feedback. I'll be including smut later on (maybe under a link to my livejournal to be safe). For those of you who may have concerns about the plot being lost behind the lemon, you have nothing to worry about. The romance runs parallel to the plot, and I will _never_ allow this to become a PWP story. I promise! Furthermore, the relationship will follow a gradual progression; there won't be a sudden "I love you, let's shag like bunnies in heat." ;)

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Warning: **Brief mention of torture.

* * *

**Chapter 16: Addiction**

Under the cover of thunderclouds, two dark figures launched from the Hokage tower and blurred over rooftops. They paused to crouch on the side of a building with the barest hint of chakra as the night-shift ANBU patrol passed just several feet away. Exchanging a quick nod of dark, blank masks, the two blurred again as one.

They arrived at a shadowed alley across from a modest apartment complex and turned to each other. The taller figure raised his arm to form hand signs but stopped. The smaller figure tilted his head questioningly before shaking it in amusement. He formed his own hand signs to his companion, at which the taller companion started.

_:You know ANBU hand signs?:_

The smaller figure shrugged.

_:Later. Mission first.:_

He squinted at the building for a moment before turning back to the first.

_:I take One, you take Two. Sakumo should already be with Three, and Jaguar is watching Four.:_

They exchanged another nod, and blurred.

* * *

Four men stood in the Hokage's Office, and one sat behind the desk, pulling a long drag from his pipe.

"Akashiori, report."

The Hunter-nin, his mask returned to the spiral one, stepped forward. "After thorough investigation, identities of four spies from Iwa were confirmed eight days ago, disguised as shinobi secretary at the Office of Emergency Management, a mid-level chuunin, his 'daughter' who is a third-year Academy student, and a civilian janitor in the Hokage Tower. All four have been captured and are currently detained at ANBU T&I. I will be assisting Yamanaka Inokazu with the extraction. The existence of another Iwa spy in Konoha is very unlikely. However, I have suspicions about a spy from Ame which I will investigate after the Iwa-nin are dealt with."

"Excellent. Does anyone have anything further to add?"

"Sir," Jaguar spoke, "I discovered a hidden compartment in the Academy student's room. It is locked by an advanced seal."

"Cheetah, as Seal Master, you will take care of it." Sarutobi looked between the four. "Good job. Hatake, Cheetah, Jaguar, you are dismissed. Akashiori, stay."

Once the two were alone, Akashiori looked at the Hokage defiantly from behind his mask.

"Akashiori, you know I am not questioning your competence. However, I worry for your mental state. Are you certain you are ready to participate in the interrogation?"

"I guarantee I can handle it."

Sarutobi sighed with the face of someone a decade older. "I can see nothing will deter you. Then I order you to keep Minato-kun positioned nearby."

The Hunter-nin growled unhappily. "Very well."

Before Akashiori walked out, he removed his mask and shifted into Naruto.

He frowned at the Hokage. "Jijii, you're going to get cancer if you keep smoking like that."

Sarutobi slowly blew smoke out from his nose. "And do I?"

"Well, no…but I'm going to make sure you live longer this time, so cut down on it, will ya?"

"Sorry, gaki, my pipe is one thing I won't give up. I call it a healthy addiction because it keeps me sane."

Naruto looked at his superior incredulously. "You call yourself sane? Just yesterday, you threw a stack of paperwork out the window!"

"That was also for my sanity." Sarutobi took an even deeper drag, closing his eyes with an exaggerated look of contentment. "Ahhhh, bliss."

"Jijii!"

"No."

"Stop acting like a baby, old man."

"What baby smokes?"

"You also stink like a second-hand ashtray. By the time the next Hokage takes office, this room will permanently smell like a chimney."

"And will it?"

Naruto groaned in frustration. "No, but either way, it's unhealthy."

"As you just stated, it has no adverse effects on the future. Besides, it makes me appear wiser."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Wiser? Yeah right, it just makes you look elderly."

"Elderly?" Sarutobi leaned forward threateningly. "Gaki, let me tell you, I am only fifty. There is not a single speck of grey in my hair and beard."

Naruto's mouth dropped open. "What? You're only fifty? I could have sworn you were at least sixty-five."

"Brat! I am still in my prime. Just ask my wife." Sarutobi said smugly.

Naruto choked. "Ewwww, I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."

"Oh? Is it too much for your innocent ears?"

The blonde's cheeks stained pink. "I am _not_ having that conversation. Jijii, if I have to have Minato there for the interrogation, you have to cut down on smoking. Equivalent exchange."

"How is that in any way equivalent? I had the strong impression that you enjoy time spent with Minato-kun." Sarutobi smirked as if he knew a secret. "You two seem quite close, even sharing ice cream."

Naruto turned bright red and pointed in outrage. "Y-you, you were spying on us!"

"That's a ridiculous accusation. I was merely performing a regular sweep of the village when I happened upon that _sweet_ scene. Did you notice that several of his fangirls burst into tears and several more fainted from blood loss? You formed dangerous enemies that day."

"Huh? Why would that make me anyone's enemy?" Naruto frowned in confusion before it dawned on him. "Crap! It's because I dropped my ice cream, isn't it!"

Sarutobi choked on a lungful of smoke.

"Jijii?" The blonde rushed around the desk to pat the coughing man's back. "See, this is why you shouldn't smoke. Your lungs are already starting to fail you. If I knew it was already this bad, I would have mentioned it earlier."

"Naruto, you are an idiot," the Hokage muttered incoherently between coughs.

"Tell you what, let's make a deal. For every month you cut down on half of your smoking, I'll write you one chapter of Icha Icha."

Sarutobi's eyes glinted. "How can I be sure of the quality? You barely know anything about romance. I refuse to read trash."

Naruto rolled his eyes and thought, 'As if it isn't already trash.'

However, he replied, "Old man, I was Ero-Sennin's editor for years. My first Icha Icha manuscript stopped a war. Of course it will be top quality."

"Well then, I will cut down on one-eighth of my tobacco usage."

"Are you kidding me? That's it? Do you know how painful it is to write that junk? Three-eighths."

"Are you trying to ruin the village through my withdrawal? That would be a breach of your pledge, brat. One-sixth."

"I'm trying to improve our village leader's health. How is that breaching my pledge? Two-fifths."

"What about my mental health? One-fourths."

"No, cut one-third of your smoking. That's my final offer." Naruto paused. "Orrrr, you can wait for Ero-Sennin's next book, which in my timeline comes out in four years."

"Four years!" Sarutobi instantly sat up and roared. "What is that lazy boy doing out there?"

"Calm down or you'll have a heart attack. Now, that would be a breach. Anyway, don't worry Ero-Jijii, I'm making him publish the next one in a few months for his Kusa infiltration. But, isn't it better if you have that one _and_ mine? Double the fun…" Naruto shuddered. "And you'll get the first installment next month."

"Hmmm, that sounds acceptable," Sarutobi said nonchalantly, but he was unable to hide all of his giggles of anticipation.

Disconcerted, Naruto backed away cautiously from the giggling pervert. "Uhh…great. I'll just, uh, be going." He shunshined out of the door, leaving a large puff of agitated cloud.

As soon as he was in the T&I basement, he activated the Hiraishin seal on his neck. A moment later, Minato appeared and immediately slung his arm over Naruto's shoulders.

"The old man wants you to stay nearby while I interrogate our friends," Naruto informed the taller blonde as he secretly enjoyed Minato's hand ruffling his hair. They joined the Yamanaka in the observation room and looked through the one-way glass at the chuunin spy tied to a chair and blindfolded.

"Akashiori-san, the first one is ready."

The Hunter-nin covered his grim expression with his mask and stalked in.

Hours later, a Naruto with haunted eyes stepped back out, screams still ringing in his ears. He looked around the observation room tiredly, and his shoulders lost some of its tension when his eyes landed on a tall blonde standing against the back wall, dozing. After informing Inokazu when both their reports were due, he shuffled over to the ANBU Captain and fell into him with a relieved sigh.

Minato was startled awake when he felt a weight against his front and arms wrap around his torso. He almost panicked when he looked down to see a mop of blond hair buried into his shoulder.

"Naruto? Are you alright?" Minato asked urgently as he stroked the unruly hair. At Naruto's sharp nod, he tilted the smaller blonde's face up towards his. Something within him jolted at the wrongness of Naruto's haunted eyes; those azure eyes which usually held a beautiful brilliance were dull and weary, sometimes unfocused as if they were seeing something darker, and what cut him the most was the regret reflected in them.

"Minato, let's go home," Naruto said softly.

In a bright flash, they landed in Naruto's room. Naruto crawled onto the bed to huddle in the middle, pulling his legs close and hugging them tightly. He looked extremely young and vulnerable.

Minato knelt next to the bed and pulled the hunched body to him.

"Interrogation always sucks." Naruto relaxed in the arms. "Especially with those who are strong. Then you have to break them." He sighed. "And what you find out is always bad news. I should have sniffed out the spies earlier."

"But you had nothing to go on until the results of the Shinobi Assessment came in." Minato leaned back to look at Naruto's dejected face.

"But I should have gotten the civilian earlier. Iwa was able to get copies of some of our confidential documents lying around in offices and sabotage missions for half a year!" Naruto cried out angrily. "We're lucky his background didn't qualify him for anything beyond a janitor. Otherwise…"

Minato smoothed out Naruto's clenched fist and allowed the younger blonde to speak his frustrations.

"The kid was the hardest. He gathered the most information on us, and he was damn stubborn. I would have loved to take him as an apprentice, but now he's practically foaming at the mouth…"

They fell into a pensive silence. While Naruto's mind flashed through the 'what if's' of the future, Minato found himself thinking about how his life had changed. In the short period of less than a year, the smaller blonde had become the center of his world, first appearing out of nowhere to disrupt his sleep and drawing his attention even while hiding away.

And then, somehow he had broken through that thick guard of sorrow. It was like his eyes had finally learned to notice details, and that previous to knowing Naruto, his vision had been veiled by a thin film of delusion. Now, every day he learned something new about Naruto, himself, and the people around them.

The smaller blonde was as innocent as he was dark, selflessness warring with selfishness, pleasure versus duty. The result was a murky grey. Naruto saw nothing as just black or white, completely wrong or right, and his actions reflected that belief. Minato had discovered that for everything Naruto did, he first asked himself a 'why' which revealed whether the means to an end was worth the cost. Furthermore, that 'why' allowed him to form his own judgments rather than to follow blindly.

From studying Naruto, he found that he himself was sometimes guilty of one-dimensional thinking. Moreover, he became aware of the existence of evil in humanity right within his village. Konoha which had previously seemed scrupulous was now riddled with dark blemishes in his eyes. Since young, the idea that Konoha could do no wrong had been ingrained in its citizens alongside the pride of being part of such a great village. Only after meeting Naruto did it truly hit him that the people of Konoha were just as flawed, if not more, as people everywhere else.

People would _have to be_ very flawed to have turned against a boy as sweet as Naruto. He'd met childhood-Naruto in his mindscape many times and couldn't fathom how anyone could be so cruel.

Whatever the reason, he was going to do his best to shield him from any hurt which was sure to come with any major conflict.

'He is mine to protect,' Minato thought resolutely as he kissed Naruto lightly on the nose and watched a baffled look, followed by a cute blush, form on the Hunter-nin's face.

* * *

Several days later found Naruto on Minato's bed, lying across Minato's legs, hitting his head repeatedly on a brand new notebook. Minato set down a mission report he was writing up and nudged the smaller blonde in the stomach with his chakra.

"I don't think brain damage will make whatever you're doing any easier."

Naruto groaned. "I hate writing porrrrrnnn!"

Minato's control over his chakra crashed. "What?"

Naruto mashed his face into the notebook and covered his head with his hands. "I promised Jijii I'd write him an Icha Icha. I forgot how _awful_ it is."

Minato bit the inside of his cheek to contain the mirth bubbling up. "Why would you do that? Wait, you've written porn before?"

"I was trying to get Jijii to smoke less, and before I knew it I ended up offering Icha Icha as a trade. Do you know that Icha Icha is so popular because it actually has a plot hidden behind all that…s–stuff? I bet it's so brainwashed fans can convince themselves they're reading proper literature. On top of that, there's at least one outrageously exaggerated promiscuous scene in every chapter. I mean, you'd have to be crazy to think it's normal to orgasm ten times in one sitting."

"Maybe if you took a soldier pill…" Minato suggested helpfully.

"…you did not just say that," Naruto said in horror, shoving his palms over his ears. "I can't believe it. You've finally shown your true colors as a closet pervert!"

Minato couldn't hold back anymore. He threw his head back and laughed. This was the second time Naruto had accused him of being a pervert.

Naruto propped himself up on his elbows and glared back at the man fighting for air. Practically half the people he knew in this time were perverts! Sandaime-Jijii, Jiraiya, Sakumo, Kakashi in several years, and now Minato. Shikaku would probably be a pervert too if he wasn't so lazy.

Once Minato calmed down, he extracted his legs from under Naruto's stomach and purposefully crawled to the smaller blonde.

"So you think I'm a pervert?" Minato grazed his lips against the shell of Naruto's ear. _"Naru-chan…"_ Minato whispered the nickname in a low, husky voice and lifted a hand to caress the Hiraishin seal on the back of Naruto's slender neck.

Naruto froze, and for a moment Minato worried about having triggered another flashback, but a moment later, the smaller blonde let out an adorable 'eep!' and tumbled off the bed. Naruto stumbled to his feet and backed up against the opposite wall.

Minato inwardly grinned mischievously, but on the surface, he raked his eyes up and down Naruto's figure, licking his lips as he smoothly climbed off the bed and glided to the Hunter-nin who now resembled a deer caught in headlights. He stopped inches away and placed his hands on either side of Naruto's head.

Leaning down, he murmured, "Ne, Naru-chan, can you to say it again?"

"S-say what?" Naruto stuttered, a vibrant blush blooming on his face.

"Don't tell me you've already forgotten." Minato hovered his lips next to Naruto's ear, making sure his warm breaths tickled the sensitive skin. "You just accused me of being a _pervert_." He lightly nipped the ear lobe.

Naruto suddenly found it impossible to breathe. A hand brushed aside his bangs, and he was looking up into a pair of smoldering blue eyes.

"Um, sorry?" Naruto squeaked. The same hand cupped the base of his head and spread chakra down his spine.

Naruto's eyes slipped shut. "Mmmm," he moaned softly at the sensation, "More…"

"What's the magic word?" As he teasingly pulled back his chakra, Minato reveled in the small frown that marred Naruto's face.

"Please, Minato," the smaller blonde whispered.

The ANBU Captain felt blood rush downward at the way Naruto pleaded his name. Kami, Naruto had no idea how tantalizing he looked – hazy eyes and rosy cheeks, and _so deliciously submissive_. It was a vision right out of those rumored wet dreams he had missed out on because he had been too busy training during his teenage years.

Minato now fully understood what Jiraiya had meant weeks ago when he had said "I'm not you." He, not Jiraiya, was the one who was a danger to Naruto's body. It was funny to think that he was more of a threat than the real (super) pervert. Ugh, and Sakumo-senpai and possibly Kakashi knew too.

But he didn't care about accusations of being perverted if he got to see Naruto like this.

"Very good." He pulsed chakra down the spine, causing Naruto's lips to part in a gasp.

Minato sighed disappointedly. He would love to pull Naruto to him and continue now that he figured out why he was always trying to get the smaller blonde's attention, but any more would be a very bad idea.

So he ruffled Naruto's hair and stepped back, snapping Naruto out of his daze. Naruto blinked in surprise and shook his head to clear his mind.

He blinked again, and again, and then sputtered.

Minato stifled his chuckle at the mortified blush across Naruto's face.

"Stop messing with me, you ass! You did the same thing a few weeks ago and made me drop my ice cream."

Minato held back a snort. "Sorry, sorry," he said, not sounding apologetic at all. "I'll treat you to another one anytime." If dropping his ice cream was all Naruto remembered from that incident, he had his work cut out for him to get his friend to notice his advances. Naruto was as dense as the walls of ANBU holding cells.

"You better. Or else I'll make you one of the two main characters in my Icha Icha book," Naruto threatened ominously as if it was the worst possible insult.

"Are you going to be the other one, Naru-chan?"

"Huh? Of course not. It would be Uzumaki-san."

Minato arched an eyebrow. "Why her?"

"Because you two complement each other," Naruto explained as if stating the obvious.

"We do?" That was news to him. He personally thought no matter how great of a person she was, Kushina was too rowdy most of the time. However, she was one of his few female acquaintances outside of ANBU who wasn't a crazy fangirl, was skilled at keeping them at bay, and was an expert at Fuuinjutsu – all qualities of an excellent friend. But complementing each other…? Erm, no way. "Actually, she kind of scares me half the time."

"Really? Shikaku said the same thing."

"All the male shinobi of our generation are scared of her."

"I see…" This was worrisome. How did his parents get together if Minato was scared of her? Naruto wished he had nagged the Ero-Sennin from his Past more about his parents' relationship, because right now, baby-Naruto was at risk of never being born.

"Naruto, why can't you be the other character?"

"Duh, I'm not a girl."

"But you wouldn't mind it if you were a girl?"

"That would be _really_ weird."

"But you wouldn't mind?"

"Well, you're a great guy, so I doubt anyone would be against taking that part."

"What about _you_?"

Naruto looked at his friend strangely. "Sheesh, I guess I wouldn't mind. As long as your character isn't called Minato and my character isn't Naruto or Naruko…" A pause. "Hmmm, you and I do get along pretty well. Maybe I could borrow parts of our personalities," he mumbled thoughtfully. "That might work. Jijii was always a sucker for stories where close friends end up as lovers. Though, I'd rather _my_ personality be the guy and yours be the girl."

"You're pretty serious about this…"

"Jijii won't accept anything that could be considered trash."

"Isn't Icha Icha synonymous to trash?"

Naruto looked up in surprise. "You think so too! ?…So you really aren't a pervert?"

"That's what I've been trying to tell you," Minato said, exasperated. "Jiraiya-sensei was pretty upset when he found out I wouldn't follow in his footsteps."

'I bet he'll be even more upset when he finds out I'm after a man,' he thought with great amusement.

"Does that mean you won't be able to help me write this junk?"

"Oh, no, I would be happy to help." Minato set a supportive hand on Naruto's shoulder, close enough to rub his thumb over the unclothed neck. _More than happy_.

* * *

As Naruto tore across the village, he berated himself for forgetting such an important event.

Today marked one year since he arrived in the past. He had been walking aimlessly through the streets, appreciating the buildings, the people, the families, the happiness, and the fact that his home was alive and well and beautiful.

Suddenly, Kyuubi had spoken up, informing him that he had just overheard gossip about one Uchiha Itachi. Naruto had, at that point, tripped over air and barely caught himself in time to avoid face planting on the ground.

June 9th.

Itachi's birthday.

Birth date.

It was a date he had intended to pay respects to (from afar) but had forgotten two weeks ago.

Arriving at the Uchiha Clan Compound, Naruto disguised himself as a bird and masked his chakra. He flew to the main house, circling the building for any sign of the mother or baby.

_There!_

On the veranda overlooking the beautiful traditional garden, Mikoto sat rocking her first-born child, making funny faces at him uncharacteristic of an Uchiha. The bundle wriggled and hiccupped. It was a heartwarming sight, and also one which almost made Naruto burst out in laughter. He had never before thought Itachi capable of hiccupping. Actually, he had never before thought of Itachi as a baby and mentally smacked himself in the head for imagining that the man was born as…a grown man.

When a little hand peaked from within the cocoon of the white blanket, the time traveler was flooded with the desire to see all of the boy.

Naruto hid himself, released his henge, and donned his Hunter-nin uniform. Taking a deep breath, he leapt into the garden and dropped onto one knee in front of the woman, head bowed low. Less than a second later, the team of ANBU guarding the Uchiha pair surrounded the blonde with weapons raised.

"Uchiha-san, I have come to pay my respects to you and your son." Naruto lifted his piercing blue eyes to meet hers.

One of the ANBU – Frog who had been the first within ANBU to extend a hand of acceptance after the incident with Jackal – gasped.

"Uzuhara?"

"Yes, Frog-san?" He lowered his eyes to Itachi.

"You're Hunter-nin?"

"That's right."

"Oh…" Frog trailed off. "Okay."

Naruto jerked his face to the man standing next to him. "What? That's it?" He asked incredulously. "You don't care that I'm Hunter-nin?"

Frog sheathed his sword and shrugged. "Well, you're pretty cool."

Naruto gaped.

"Does Namikaze-san know?"

Naruto nodded mutely.

"Then I have no problems with what you are. Namikaze-san is a pretty good judge of character."

A wide grin split the blonde's face as he stood. "You know what? You might just be cooler than Minato. Don't tell him I said that, though," he mock whispered conspiratorially. "He'd sulk for days."

"I'll be sure to tell him, then," Frog replied with a chuckle.

"And can you keep this a secret? You know how Hunter-nin aren't very popular."

"Sure, kid," the man assured. He looked at the other ANBU. "Team?"

"Yes, Captain," all four nin answered.

"There! Your secret is safe with us. So, mind telling us what you're doing here? You know this is called breaking and entering, right?"

"No it's not." Naruto tried to look innocent. "I didn't break anything so it's called 'entering.'"

Mikoto watched the exchange with amusement. She relaxed as she listened to the blonde boy – Uzuhara – botch his explanation, sensing that Frog was trying not to laugh at the puppy eyes directed at him.

"ANBU-san, you can stop teasing the poor boy," she called out. "He seems harmless."

One of Frog's teammates snorted. "Uzuhara, harmless? Yeah right. Kid's anything but harmless."

"Well, looks like everything's fine. See you at Headquarters. Let's spar sometime." Frog and his team vanished back to their positions.

"Uchiha-san, c-can I see him?" Naruto asked nervously.

"Of course." Mikoto smiled. "Come here."

Ignoring the urge to shunshin over, he took measured, soundless steps to the woman.

"What's your name?"

"Naruto. Uzuhara Naruto," he told her without lifting his eyes from the small bundle in her arms. He stopped in front of them and knelt down for a closer look.

_Oh Kami_, it was Itachi.

He was chubby.

His little lips held a stubborn pout, his pudgy cheeks pale and smooth, and his eyes squeezed tightly shut. This was one of the people he respected most in the world. The man who gave up his own life and family for this village and who secretly protected him for years.

"May I hold him?" Although he hadn't planned on coming this close, he felt like he needed to make sure…

Mikoto must have seen the desperation in his expression because her eyes softened and she held her son out to him without hesitation.

Naruto cradled the infant in his arms with utmost care.

"Uchiha Itachi," he tested the name.

As if his voice reached the little ears, Itachi opened large, ebony eyes and gurgled happily at him.

Naruto breathed out a near-silent laugh. He touched a finger to a tiny palm and watched as even tinier fingers curled loosely around it.

"Uzuhara-san?"

Mikoto's voice brought him out of the brief world where only he and Itachi had existed. He then noticed a wetness which turned out to be silent tears rolling down his face.

"Itachi, thank you."

The man had done enough. Suffered enough. Maybe not this Itachi, but they were in essence the same.

"Uchiha-san." Naruto gently returned the boy to his young mother and rose to his feet, standing tall with head held high. "I will protect this boy and your family to the best of my abilities. I swear it." _I never go back on my word!_

Regardless of whether it was accidental or not, he had been granted this chance to create better lives for his precious people. There was no way he would let it slip through his fingers.

With determination flashing through his eyes, Naruto backed up and bowed until his body was parallel to the ground in the highest respect. For a moment, Mikoto was strongly reminded of her best friend Kushina's face when she had vowed to protect Konoha from the Nine-Tailed Fox sealed within her. The sharp eyes, grim set to the mouth, and slight lift of the chin were unbelievably similar.

"Thank you for allowing me, a complete stranger, to hold your precious son. Your family has my blessing." As he spoke, Naruto's mind was working at full speed. It had all started with Tobi. Tobi was the catalyst to it all, and he was going to _hunt the bastard down_.

For the first time since he arrived in the past, he was truly, completely thankful to be there. Plans for the war were progressing better than expected, he had gotten to know amazing people, and there was going to be hell to pay when he found the people responsible for the shit that went wrong in his Past.

It was time to begin preparations for the hunt.

Just before Naruto vanished, Fugaku rounded the corner of the hall. Alarmed at the deadly aura surrounding the blonde, his stoic exterior broke and he rushed to his wife and son.

"Mikoto! Are you hurt?"

His unconcerned wife smiled lovingly at him. "I am fine, dear. There is nothing to worry about."

Fugaku froze at his slip of emotions and only barely covered his incoming blush with a stern mask. _Uchihas do not blush. _He reminded himself._ Not even at the woman he is head over heels in love with. _However, the widening of Mikoto's smile showed that she had seen through his act.

Fugaku quickly turned his face away from her, to the spot the Hunter-nin had previously stood.

"Who was that boy?"

"That was Uzuhara Naruto, our protector in the shadows." Mikoto leaned over to peck her husband on his cheek. "I believe Itachi will be safe with him watching over us."

* * *

Minato noticed the change in behavior immediately.

Naruto had always trained religiously, taking meticulous care to keep his body strong and perfect new techniques. But now, he had doubled his efforts as if fighting towards a nearly unattainable goal.

Minato joined him in training as often as he could, but unlike the Hunter-nin who took sporadic missions wherever most needed, be it for the war, Tokubetsu Jounin infiltration, or Missing-nin elimination, he had regular ANBU missions which took up more of his time than he liked.

It was on one of these missions that Lion suffered a severe injury which put him out of commission for a month.

Hokage-sama had not been pleased. Team 9 had been contracted for an important mission which required their superior skills that no other team could match.

The operational members of the team lined up nervously in front of the Hokage's desk while their village leader vented his irritation on his paperwork, slashing his pen across the sheets viciously. It was piled high in multiple stacks, and Minato promised himself to never be in a position where he had to fill out more than mission reports. The Sandaime was obviously cranky from the cyclical summer influx of paperwork, and Team 9's lack of a team member didn't help his mood.

"This mission was requested directly by the Daimyou. How will I explain to the obstinate man that Konoha will not be able to fulfill his exorbitant demands?" Sarutobi crumpled a document and chucked it angrily into the waste bin. "He creates more paperwork in a week than a month of Council squabbles. I am convinced this is his revenge for the time I accidentally gave him food poisoning before a critical speech ten years ago."

All four ANBUs' eyebrows rose behind their masks.

This time, Sarutobi slammed his fist on his desk, grabbed one of his paperweights while snarling about the increasing number of budget demands and launched it at the window with all his might.

The team watched in fascination as the window opened and the paperweight smashed into the face of a figure hopping through. Coincidence? Probably not. The shinobi toppled back out of the window with an undignified yelp and disappeared from sight.

The Sandaime Hokage continued to slash through the documents as if he hadn't just possibly killed someone.

No one dared to move or speak.

"Jijii, you worthless Hokage! What was that for?" The furious voice of Uzuhara Naruto came from outside. "I came to bring you something good, and you thank me by trying to kill me?" He climbed inside, nursing a broken nose.

"Oh, Naruto. What happened you your face?" Sarutobi asked curiously.

"You threw your paperweight into my face again, senile old man! I would throw one at you too if I didn't know that you would just catch it and throw it back harder."

"Oh, yes, yes. How unfortunate. Naruto, come here and assist me with my paperwork."

"You're asking me for a favor right after you abused me? No way."

"It isn't a request, but an order. You are currently free–" Sarutobi blinked. A smile slowly twisted on his face. It was not a nice smile.

"Oh, no, Jijii. I know that smile. Whatever you're thinking, I'm not doing it."

"It is merely a mission outside the village. If you choose not to accept, you will be assigned to sanitation duty. I am certain the Kurosawa Waste Company employees will appreciate a week off."

"Ugh," Naruto gagged. "Well, then what's the mission?"

"You will temporarily join Team 9 for a mission for the Daimyou."

"No."

Four masked faces looked at the Hunter-nin in surprise.

"I don't like working in teams."

"Then you would rather handle waste disposal?"

Naruto nodded sharply. "I don't work well in teams. I'm leaving." He blurred out of the room leaving it in silence.

Sarutobi sighed.

"Cheetah, you are the only one with any chance of convincing the idiot boy. See what you can do."

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Minato was gone in a flash.

He reappeared behind Naruto who had already traveled a surprising distance towards the Forest of Death.

"Naruto…" Minato pushed aside his mask.

"Tch, of course the old man would send you," Naruto growled. "My answer is still no."

"Why?"

The smaller blonde pursed his lips.

"Please, Naruto. Tell me what's wrong." Minato caught a wrist to halt their movement.

Naruto shivered at the touch but didn't shake it off. Looking anywhere but at the ANBU-nin, he spoke tonelessly. "It's because every single team I've been on has either splintered or died. I'm not going to do it again. I haven't worked in a team in over two years anyway."

"It won't require too much coordination. The problem is that Lion is out of commission, but we can't reject this mission for the Daimyou. No other team has the capabilities to fulfill the task."

Minato saw the slight hesitation before Naruto answered with another negative, meaning the Hunter-nin had not yet fully buried his sense of duty.

"You would really rather work with sewage than with us?"

Naruto glared. "That's not the point."

"What about the two of us? We work well together. Remember Suna and our spars? My team knows you too."

"No. Nothing you say is going to convince me."

"Then maybe this will convince you." Minato suddenly wrapped an arm around Naruto's waist, pulling the smaller blonde tightly against him. His other hand slid up Naruto's neck and rested on his scarred cheek.

Knowing what was to come, Naruto struggled to escape but the arm was unrelenting.

"Ready, Naruto?" Minato asked with a roguish smirk.

"Hell, no! Don't you dare–" Naruto threw his head back as potent warmth flooded his body from every point of contact. His knees immediately gave out from the pleasure, and Minato's arm tightened even more to support his weight.

"Mina…to…" the boneless blonde fought against the overwhelming waves to stay focused, but he was slowly but surely losing to the sensations. It was like warm, soothing fingers all over, stroking and kneading lovingly. He clutched Minato's ANBU vest, trying to ground himself somehow.

A light slither of chakra caressed his bared neck, causing Naruto to quiver and moan.

"So, what do you say?" Minato whispered, lips only an inch away from Naruto's. The incoherent Hunter-nin shook his head weakly, _almost_ brushing their lips.

"Still no?" Minato asked in wicked delight. From the arm trapping the waist, he trailed chakra down the back of Naruto's thighs, inciting another louder moan. "Open your eyes, Naruto," he commanded, the soft strength in the velvet voice making it impossible to disobey.

Hazy blue met darkened blue. Those alluring eyes sucked Minato in.

"Won't you do it for me?" Minato began deliberately withdrawing his chakra, leaving light traces that reminded Naruto of the pleasure, but just wasn't enough.

"No," The smaller blonde whimpered, trying to grasp at Minato's chakra with his own.

"No, what?"

"Don't leave…"

"You want me back?" Minato traced Naruto's bottom lip with a chakra coated thumb. Fuck, it was soft and tempting.

"Yes, Mina…"

_Do you even realize what you're saying, Naruto?_

"Agree to the mission and I'll give you a bit more." Minato lowered the hand to narrow hip and spread out a light, meandering layer. His pulse quickened when Naruto's pink tongue snaked out to lick the tingling lip back and forth. The tongue retreated, and glistening lips dropped open to let out a shuddering sigh.

"N-not there…" _The time seal…_

"What's your answer?" Minato urged hoarsely, knowing he could only take a little more of this enticing display before he would start wanting more.

Naruto barely heard the question as his entire body thrummed with Minato's warmth. He couldn't get enough of the wonderful feeling of being accepted and protected. A part of his mind – the jaded Hunter-nin – rejected the warmth, raising suspicions of intent, but another part of his mind – Uzumaki Naruto – wanted to make the warmth his own. The indecision frightened him, but it also felt like something good lay beyond the resolution of this mental conflict.

He needed to know more, feel more.

Naruto pressed himself closer.

Minato's breath hitched as the body in his arms rubbed against him. He was starting to lose control. This adorable, clueless blonde was evoking feelings, both emotional and physical, he had never experienced before. He had to pull back now, or else he might hurt Naruto.

"Naruto, please do the mission with us," Minato whispered into Naruto's neck, lips just skimming the skin. "I want you there."

Naruto shivered and finally gave in. "…Okay."

Minato smiled and nuzzled the neck, then pulled back little by little.

It took several minutes for Naruto to fully wake from the haze, and when he did, he let out a frustrated shout.

"You!" Naruto leapt back, almost tripping on rubbery knees. "That's playing dirty! You know I'm weak against your chakra!"

"Hey, you use your puppy eyes against me all the time. This makes it even."

"How the hell is it even? My way isn't nearly as effective as yours," Naruto grumbled. "I've got to find a better method, or I'm going to keep losing."

Minato wanted to shake his friend and shout that it wasn't just a competition to him.

"You like it, though."

"No I don't," Naruto denied.

Minato hid a grin. "'You're sure you don't want to feel it again? The warmth that makes your worries melt away. Are you sure you won't miss me?"

"I…yes…well, no…"

Naruto huffed in anger and frustration, mostly at himself.

Minato smirked triumphantly; he had just made a small chip in Naruto's thick skull. Progress, however little, was still progress.

He slung his arm over Naruto's shoulders. "Come on, don't be mad. I'm weak against your eyes, and you use it a lot more often than I use my chakra. Think about how many times you've conned me into treating you to ramen."

Naruto scowled. "Whatever. Let's just go see the stupid old man."

* * *

Team 9 had been waiting at the gate for fifteen minutes by the time Naruto arrived.

"Sorry guys," he apologized. "I had to get outfitted in ANBU gear."

The team examined Naruto's uniform, finding it a little strange to see him with a light grey vest armor and arm guards instead of how he usually dressed without any identifying vest at all.

Naruto moved his new ANBU mask over his face.

The ANBU Captain studied it curiously. "What's your mask? I don't recognize it."

"I'm the first one to choose it," Naruto informed him proudly. "Do you really want to know?"

"I need to call you by a codename," Cheetah pointed out.

"Okay then," Naruto said, straightening professionally and saluting.

"Thank you for having me, Captain. Turtle at your service."

Cheetah dropped the pouch he had been fastening.

"_Turtle?_" The Temporary ANBU could easily imagine the incredulous, gaping face. "You chose a creature known for its _slowness_?"

The speediest Turtle in the world grinned. "I thought it would be funny."

"Yes, Captain, 'slow and steady wins the race,'" Jaguar deadpanned.

Tiger and Leopard who had been listening from the side burst out laughing.

"See, they agree."

* * *

**A/N:** Wouldn't you want to snatch this smoking hot Minato for yourself? Naruto, unfortunately, is totally blind to this...

The mystery character was Itachi :)

Next chapter: The mission. Enter Gai! Kyuubi, Kushina, and Naruto stuff. Maybe Jiraiya's thoughts?

_August 1, 2012_


	17. Soft

**A/N:** I am _so_ _sorry_ for the loooonng delay! Between working, apartment searching, and moving, I haven't had much time to just sit and crank out a decent chapter. Also,** _writer's block is a bitch._** Things should speed up a bit more now that I've settled and started to fit into a regular routine. I'll aim for a chapter every 3 weeks.

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who left reviews and sent me reminder messages, and I apologize if I didn't reply! Don't worry about sounding pushy; those messages always gave me motivation to write.

And guess what, I got a fanart! I'm so excited and happy and everything! This excellent piece is called 'All Mine' by **LovelyTitania**. Check it out at her DeviantART page:

www {dot} lovelytitania {dot} deviantart {dot} com/art/All-Mine-318356579

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel.

* * *

**Warning:** Mentions of mild sexual themes.

* * *

**Chapter 17: Soft**

As Team 9 and Turtle neared the Capital, Turtle was sorely tempted to activate his time seal to escape this miserable situation Minato had dragged him into.

Their pace was _vexingly _slow.

He had picked the Turtle mask as a joke, but Team 9 should have been named Team Snail, because it seriously felt like they were traveling at a snail's pace…

The Temporary ANBU knew he was being unfair since not only was speed was one of his strengths, but Team 9 was also _much_ faster than all of the Jounin teams he had ever joined. Still, he was entitled to be extra grumpy after losing against the other blonde (that chakra-abusing cheater!).

From the back of the group, he drilled holes in Minato's head and grinned evilly when the man's shoulders stiffened visibly from the subtle killing intent.

Curiously, he hadn't switched personas into Akashiori or any "Black Ops" mindset when the ANBU mask slid over his face. He remained Uzumaki Naruto, the proud prankster and reckless idiot. It was a pleasant change from the efficient but dark Hunter-nin he usually turned into.

"So what's the mission?" Turtle asked once he admitted the futility of sulking.

"We're tracking a 23-year-old A-rank kunoichi," Tiger moved to sprint next to him.

"Missing-nin or Missing-In-Action?"

"She's the Daimyou's rebellious betrothed."

Turtle arched an unseen eyebrow. "And they're sending the fourth best ANBU team to track down a wayward fiancé?"

"Remember, she's A-rank, and that rating is legit. She's one of the best Cleaners in the Five Countries – high in demand for high-profile missions where all footprints of Fire Country need to be erased," he explained. "We're apparently the only ones to ever succeed in finding her."

"For Team 9's tracking expertise," Turtle added quietly to himself, impressed by her skill. "So where do we start?"

"The capital. She always starts there."

"Always? This is a recurring event?"

"Let's see, twice already this year, five times last year, and I think three the year before."

Turtle's jaw dropped. "So she's going to run away a few _more_ times?"

"Yeah, probably." Tiger shrugged. "Crazy woman right?"

The Temp ANBU shook his head and wondered whether he should feel flattered or degraded.

* * *

The capital was a large, bustling city predominantly made up of civilians.

"Ahh yes, Konoha's ANBU Team 9. I am pleased you answered my call so promptly," the Daimyou greeted them in his nasally voice. "My darling loves to play hide-and-seek. I hope you will indulge her again."

_Play hide-and-seek? _Turtle suppressed a snort as he eyed the distasteful man. _Who convinced him of that lie?_

The kunoichi lived up to her reputation as he experienced her outstanding skill first-hand. After much difficulty Team 9 located the kunoichi's almost nonexistent trail heading towards Hot Water Country. Forced to scrutinize the surroundings and backtrack often, their progress was even slower than before.

Turtle felt out of place as he watched the men work as a cohesive unit. He had no idea what he was supposed to do. Each member seemed to have their established role and had no problems filling Lion's. He, on the other hand, had only tracked missing-nin alone over the last two years. Even on team missions as Tokubetsu Jounin, he was a tag-along infiltration specialist rather than a team member.

Would it be a bad move if he mentioned that her trail had deviated to the left several meters back?

He had intended to thoroughly mask his discomfort, but the ever perceptive ANBU Captain picked up on it immediately.

"Turtle, your chakra control is the best in the team. Take a look around us."

He nodded a silent thank you to his friend before closing his eyes and expanding his senses. His respect for the kunoichi grew when he found barely any trace of residue chakra, and it grew further when he recognized the chakra split four ways up ahead, three of them as decoy.

He instantly pursued, stopping for only a short moment to sniff the air before speeding down the right.

Team 9 hastily pursued Turtle when he suddenly shot off running and changing directions with seemingly no care to check the trail.

"Captain…"

"It's alright, Leopard. I've seen him track before. His methods are unorthodox but accurate and efficient. Team, prepare for a grueling pace."

Just as warned, Turtle showed no signs of slowing hours later. Minato's teammates were quickly tiring from the marathon sprint through the forest, and over two hours ago, irritation at being robbed of their job had set in solidly. Yet, he paid them no mind, focused solely on hunting his quarry.

"Turtle," Cheetah called out but received no response.

"So much for being a turtle. The guy is insane…" Tiger grumbled to Leopard who agreed with a huff.

"Turtle!"

"_What?_" The Temporary ANBU whirled around with a kunai raised, ready to attack the one who was interrupting his mission.

He froze when he saw them. "What are you guys…oh."

"You forgot us, didn't you?" Cheetah stepped up to him and tugged the weapon from his hand.

"I…yeah," Turtle admitted stiffly to the four individuals he had subconsciously labeled as competent non-hostile bodies, which made them inconsequential factors in his mission. "I told you I don't work well in teams."

The Captain ruffled his subordinate's hair in forgiveness. "It's alright. Just slow down and keep us in mind. We're not hunting an enemy."

Turtle mumbled a disgruntled apology.

Next morning, the team resumed tracking, once more following Turtle's lead. By afternoon, they followed the trail to a mid-sized village in Hot Water Country.

"She arrived around 9 this morning," Turtle informed them. "Her movements were a leisurely walk of 3.6 ft/second. She is still here, and I'm pretty sure she means to stay. But, her trail is now everywhere, intentionally tangled, so I can't pinpoint her location right away."

The team blinked collectively.

Cheetah recover from surprise. "Separate and search. Turtle, since you don't know what she looks like, you're with me. Report by radio," he commanded.

An hour later, Tiger located her.

_BZZT_

"_Tiger in the west – village district 4, block 7. I found her at a dango shop across from Kinosaki Onsen."_

"_Good job. Everyone, gather."_

The kunoichi was indeed munching on a stick of dango.

When Turtle saw her, he almost made a spectacular fall off of the roof they were standing on.

'Holy shit! Kyuu, is that who I think it is?' He exclaimed.

'_It seems running away is a trait shared by both the owner and every generation of her cats,'_ Kyuubi snorted. _'I would pity you if I did not find this hilarious.'_

Turtle stared owlishly at the young woman, as skinny as a stick, with heavy purple eye shadow and bright red lipstick.

'That's the daimyo's scary wife…' he thought faintly. 'That can't be anyone other than Tora's overweight owner. The keyword being _overweight_!' The only recognizable features on her bony figure were the hideous makeup and huge dark-brown hair which made her head look like a burnt pumpkin.

"Captain…her name doesn't happen to be Shijimi, does it?"

Cheetah turned to his subordinate in surprise. "I thought you didn't know her."

Turtle's eye twitched.

"D-ranks and stupid cats…" All the respect for her vanished in half a blink.

He frowned when Tiger pushed Cheetah towards the edge of the roof. "Go get her, Captain!"

Cheetah grimaced. "I think the correct phrase is 'Go get'em, **Tiger**.'"

Bracing himself for the confrontation, the reluctant blonde jumped to street level and approached her. "Shijimi-sama, Team 9 has been sent to escort you back to the Capital."

Shijimi's squealed in delight. "CHEETAH-CHAN! It's wonderful to see you again. I have been _miserable_ without you," she attempted a cute pout… "Won't you join me, my dearie?"

Everyone in the vicinity watched the ANBU Captain with pity as she sprang up to hug him tightly. Latching onto his arm like a leech, she dragged him across the street, fawning over the man who was doing his best to inconspicuously extract himself from her.

"Kinosaki is one of the finest onsen resorts in the Five Great Countries. We must spend a night there, _together_." The blonde's adamant protests were ignored. "Don't worry, dearie. I already sent a message to the Daimyou-baka. He approved one night here for you and me…and your team. He even reserved a private onsen pool for us. The two of us can enjoy some _quality_ time. Doesn't that sound _wonderful_? Think of how much _fun_ we could have!"

Everyone cringed.

Cheetah threw his team one last look of a doomed man before the front doors slammed shut behind him with a loud bang.

* * *

Courtesy of the Daimyou, they were given a lavish room to share on their unexpected vacation.

"This is great." Leopard stretched happily, his mask off for the first time in Naruto's presence. "I haven't been to an onsen since joining ANBU."

"Where's Minato?" Naruto asked.

"He's being mauled by Shijimi."

"Mauled?" The corners of the blonde's lips twitched downwards.

"Yeah, we're pretty sure she runs away just so she can see him," Tiger snickered. "That's why she leaves us a slight trail."

Lips pressed into a thin line.

Suddenly, the door flew open, and Minato rushed in, his hair a mess, uniform in disarray, and missing his usual composure.

"Kami, I finally got away!" He tossed his mask to the side and slumped against the wall with a relieved sigh. He narrowed his eyes at the expressions on his team's faces. "Don't you dare laugh. You don't know how hard it is to escape her. She chases me like a deranged harpy!"

Tiger failed to hide his grin. "Couldn't you have just used Hiraishin to one of the seals on our uniforms, _Captain_?"

Minato mouth went slack.

"You were too busy thinking of an excuse to leave and forgot this option," Jaguar objectively answered on his superior's behalf.

The young ANBU Captain, supposed genius, palmed his face.

"Shut up, you guys," he muttered. "That's an order… gah, whatever. We might as well enjoy the onsen."

Tiger snickered. "You're only saying that because she can't reach you in the men's baths."

Minato glared daggers and inched his hand towards a kunai. "That's right, you got me. Is there anything else you want to say?"

"N-no, Captain."

* * *

It was only after midnight that Naruto finally stepped through the doors to the deserted onsen pool. Earlier, as he watched the members of Team 9 strip naked, he had remembered that these men were practically strangers – tentative teammates at most. He had quickly apologized and slipped out of the changing room before anyone could respond.

Wearing only a small towel around his slender hips, he dipped in a toe to test the water–

"Naruto," a smooth voice sounded from behind.

"Wah!" He lost his balance and was about to tumble into the scorching water, but a strong arm caught him around the waist.

"Minato! Damn it, don't sneak up on me," he exclaimed.

He felt a chin settle on his shoulder. "I gave you a heads up when I said your name." Minato's chuckle reverberated through Naruto's body from where their bare chest and back touched.

Naruto shivered and hastily stepped out of the hold. "I'm, um, getting in now," he mumbled with a slight blush.

"You're not supposed to get in with your towel on," Minato pointed out playfully.

"No one has to know," Naruto retorted. There was no way he would take off the towel in front of Minato. Slipping into the water carefully, he sat along the rocks, submerged to his chest.

Minato chuckled again and followed suit, settling down close to the other. They soaked in silence, enjoying the peaceful night and soft sounds of nature.

"Hey, Minato," Naruto broke the silence pensively. "Why are you friends with me?"

Minato turned to his companion, tilting his head questioningly. "Because I like you, of course. Why do you ask?"

Naruto felt stupid for bringing up such a pathetic question but explained anyway.

"You have tons of friends, but you spend most of your free time with me. I'm not even good company. All I do is work, train, or beg for ramen. You don't see Uzumaki-san much anymore, and your schedule is messed up since you try to coordinate with mine."

"I'm happy when I'm with you."

"But that doesn't make any sense! I've only caused you trouble the entire time we've known each other," Naruto raised his voice in frustration. Why someone so remarkable would want to spend time with someone as screwed up as him was beyond his comprehension. In merely one year, it seemed like he had taken over Minato's life, never going a day without seeing each other for hours unless away on a mission.

"I'm throwing your life completely off course."

"What's wrong, Naruto? Why all the doubts?" Minato sighed when he was met with silence. "Come here."

He pulled Naruto to sit between his legs, pulling the smaller blonde's wiry back to his chest and wrapped his arms loosely around the submerged waist.

"Um…I don't think two men usually sit like this," Naruto said, wriggling uncomfortably.

"It's fine." Minato set his chin on Naruto's shoulder once more as he enjoyed the sweet friction between his legs a little too much. "After everything we've gone through together, we are closer than typical best friends, aren't we?"

Naruto looked up at the stars skeptically.

"Relax for tonight. You've been working hard this past year, and you deserve a short break. I promise nothing will go wrong in one night."

"But what if–" Naruto cut himself off as he rolled those words around and around in his head. They were what he had wanted to hear for months – an assurance that it was okay to briefly take his mind off of the war – that Konoha wouldn't crumble when he looked away just once.

Someone was finally offering them. Why the hell was he objecting? Plus, it was Minato.

He sagged heavily into Minato and tilted his head back to rest on the larger blonde's shoulder.

"You make me feel better like no other," he mumbled tiredly.

Minato smiled into Naruto's neck, wanting so badly to taste the enticing skin. "Because I like you, of course," he repeated.

"But I'm friends with other people too. Jijii, Kakashi, Sakumo, the Ichiraku owners, Frog. They never have the same effect."

"I like you more than they do."

Naruto paused. "So, you're really my best friend?" He asked, full of hope. "Just now, you said. We're close like best friends, right?"

The "best friend" in question sighed inwardly; Naruto just wasn't getting the message that his affections went much deeper.

Naruto exhaled. "I've never told anyone before…it would have ruined his chances of coming back. My best friend tried to kill me… Actually," he barked an ugly laugh, "he did kill me for a few minutes. If I were anyone else, I would have died. That's my scar."

Minato scowled at that bit of information.

"We eventually made up. He wasn't the friendliest, but we were best friends anyway. Now he's…gone. They're all gone."

Naruto licked his lips nervously. "…Would it be okay if you are my best friend too?" he whispered as if he was asking for something unthinkable.

Minato sighed and pressed his cheek to the side of Naruto's jaw. Getting the smaller blonde to realize his full feelings was going to need more work. He would have to introduce the idiot to the idea of romantic attraction between them with words, affection, physical affection – everything.

Sliding his arms across Naruto's stomach, Minato splayed his left hand on the smaller blonde's right hip and the other hand on opposite ribs. He grinned; he knew he would enjoy this challenge.

'I can't believe I'm turning into a pervert,' he thought, bemused but not as irked as he expected. 'First a stalker, now a pervert. Jiraiya-sensei would be proud…'

"We are best friends, Naru-chan," he said softly, his voice like honey. "Since you never had a chance to experience how close best friends can be, I'll teach you. Would that be okay?"

A tingle ran down Naruto's spine. "Yeah," he replied with a tiny smile. This pleasant tingle must have been why Shikamaru and Chouji were so close. Oddly, he had never seen the two sit as close as he and Minato were now, but maybe that was because Shikamaru really liked to lie on grass…

"So what do you want to learn first?" Minato pulled him out of his musing.

"I," Naruto furrowed his brow, "I don't know. You make it sound like there's a lesson plan."

Minato laughed.

"Then we'll just go with the flow, starting with a question from me." He moved his right hand up to the ugly scar on Naruto's upper-left torso, his thumb "accidentally" grazing the nipple in its path. "I want to know more about this scar."

Naruto's breath hitched at the feel of skin skimming across skin.

Minato caressed the marred scar tissue, this time eliciting a small gasp. He hummed apologetically but didn't slow his subtle molestation. "How long ago was this?"

"Six years," Naruto said solemnly, again sharing what he had never shared before, surprised at his willingness to divulge one of his many deep, dark secrets. "We were thirteen. Just genin. Damaged. We were both damaged, and we were only thirteen." He bit his bottom lip and shivered from warm breath ghosting over the top of his jaw.

"Will you tell me what happened?"

Naruto paused. He trusted Minato, didn't he?

Of course. There was no need to even ask; he trusted Minato with his life and sanity. The absence of objection from his Akashiori wariness in the back of his mind was a clear sign that every part of him agreed.

"We hated each other at first. He thought I was worthless, and I thought he was an asshole. Then we became closer – mutual hate for D-rank missions can do that for you. I considered us best friends, and I guess he did too since that was the reason he tried to kill me."

Naruto stared into the black, steaming water. Minato waited patiently through the contemplative pause, stroking the puckered edges of the scarred skin.

Naruto took a shaky breath. "He killed me for power. All to gain power to kill someone else."

Minato growled dangerously.

Naruto's pulse sped up at the sound. The aggressive power behind the growl – so out of character – shot straight to his core.

"You can trust me," Minato whispered voice low and serious and tightened his arms in a protective gesture. "Believe me. I will never betray you."

How could he show that the promise was as solid as a thick wall of steel? With gentle fingers, Minato turned Naruto's face towards him and laid a lingering kiss on the corner of his lips.

Naruto couldn't help but lean in with a sigh of contentment. He hoped that the light blush dusting his cheeks would be mistaken for heat from the onsen. Irrefutably, whatever Minato's mouth did always sent a rush of heaven through him, whether it spoke or brushed across his neck.

"I will treasure you, Naruto."

Naruto's insides melted at the words whispered huskily into his ear. Next, his body quivered when his name was uttered lovingly against his temple. There was so much passion behind that kind, rich, confident voice.

It was no wonder the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato had captured the hearts of Konoha.

"I wish you were mine," Naruto unthinkingly blurted out the same words he had said months ago. The possessive tint accompanying them made him duck his head in shame.

"I am."

Naruto's head jerked up. "W-what?"

Minato lightly trailed his finger up and down Naruto's jaw and took a deep breath of the faintly musky scent of hair which hadn't been washed since embarking on their mission. He took another breath with relish, knowing that the Hunter-nin had a strict habit of masking all body odors. The fact that he didn't do so now proved how much the younger blonde trusted him.

Minato continued downwards to nuzzle his Hiraishin seal affixed firmly on the nape of Naruto's slender neck with _his_ chakra. It had unwittingly become a mark of possession. Someday, he was going to ask for Naruto's permission to sear it on permanently.

He felt a charge of arousal in his groin at the idea.

"I said so before, didn't I? I'm yours, as whatever you want me to be."

Naruto's cheeks heated as he vaguely recalled Minato's soft reply during his last brief relapse of trauma.

"You will never have to share me with anyone."

The smaller blonde's weary heart lifted. They could be together all the time – he would never be alone again!

"That can't happen," Naruto declared the exact opposite of his inward elation. "This is war-time, Minato. We can't afford any distractions."

The corners of Minato's lips quirked upwards against Naruto's ear lobe, barely keeping himself from tracing it with his tongue. He understood his Hunter-nin well enough to decipher the true meaning behind that mechanical response: want warring with duty and denial.

"We have to prepare our village and allies. My kage bunshin reported only yesterday that although conflict in Stone is close to reaching boiling point amongst citizens, the Tsuchikage and his Council have not reacted in any way. Jiraiya has also implied fraud in Grass. He is returning shortly to report the details."

"Haikage-sama will soon launch the next stage of preparations. It is essential to set security measures throughout west Fire Country. Cutting down enemy forces before…"

"Naruto."

"…they reach anywhere near civilization will reduce casualties. Time is…"

"Naruto."

"…against us. We have an estimated two years until wahmmph!"

Minato covered the rambling mouth with his hand. "Naru-chan, what happened to taking a break?"

Naruto ripped the hand from his mouth with a yelp. "That's _hot_! Your hand was just in the water!"

"Oh, oops," Minato said lightly, his smile evident in his voice.

"'Oh, oops?' You practically burned my mouth off, and that's all you can say!?"

"You already talked enough for the both of us." He settled his arm back around the blonde in his lap, low enough to slip a finger under his towel. "And you were avoiding what I said."

Naruto's face burned unassisted by the scorching onsen as he recalled their original conversation. No appropriate response came to mind, but he was saved from speaking when Minato continued.

"This won't be a distraction, don't you see? It's a promise. A promise that says I will never willingly leave you."

_And a promise that I will always put you first, _Minato didn't voice aloud, drawing circles on the smaller blonde's hip tenderly.

Naruto's mouth opened, but nothing came out except air.

"And even more, Naru-chan, we'll both be happier. Finding happiness in difficult times will keep us strong."

Naruto took shut his eyes in an attempt to center himself.

Space.

That's what he needed. Away from Minato's mesmerizing presence so he could think properly. Suddenly, he remembered their position: Minato's firm, naked chest pressed flush against his equally naked back and only two flimsy towels separating him from the older blonde's…_that _place.

Naruto blushed scarlet.

"I-I think we've been in the water too long. Our skin is going to, um…get burnt or something." He quickly wriggled out from between Minato's _bare_ legs. "Have to patrol too," he stood quickly with the fabricated excuse. The sudden action threw his over-heated mind off balance, and his world tipped sideways

Minato barely caught him in time, his own balance shaky.

Naruto looked up into Minato's azure eyes gratefully, and a random thought floated absently through his mind. What would it be like to kiss those gently smiling lips–

He blanched. What the hell…?

Naruto stumbled back with a splash. Where did that come from? _What was that!?_

'It must be the heat. That's what's scrambling my brain. Shijimi. That's it. Just an academic question about relationships.'

He heard Kyuubi's loud snort.

Meanwhile, Minato watched with a light pink hue on his cheeks. He had been unaffected earlier when seeing and molesting a near-naked Naruto from behind, but now that they faced each other…

The towel dropped three centimeters. Minato's blush deepened.

Naruto slipped again in his panic. This time, though, reflexive layering of chakra over his body saved him from getting dunked.

Minato was flaming red by then. When the other blonde had fallen backwards, the towel had flapped up for a second, displaying a glorious view of what lay hidden between Naruto's legs…he couldn't tear his eyes away.

_Wait, what is that?_

He couldn't see the lines clearly in the dim light but managed to make out the appearance of markings on Naruto's smooth stomach as he landed deftly on the water's surface. They resembled Four Symbols Seals, the same ones he and Kushina had been researching fruitlessly for months.

Another coat of infuriating mysteries to the one called Uzuhara Naruto.

"Naruto, what's–"

"Minato, I'm going inside now. See you later!" He disappeared in an agitated cloud of shunshin smoke. The sliding door several meters away slammed open as he performed a second shunshin to escape inside.

Minato heaved a disappointed sigh. Although Naruto was worth the effort, repeated rejections were starting to weigh on his heart. In addition, the inconsistencies that surrounded the other blonde confused him to no end. It was as if Naruto had grown up in a different but similar Konoha.

He snorted softly, half amused and half resigned. Perhaps the heat was getting to his head too.

* * *

The next day found Team 9 and Shijimi making their way back to the Fire Capital at a true snail's pace.

"Tense" was a light way of describing Turtle's state of mind, and not just of one sort. On one hand, he was still nervously assessing last night's events. On the other, he was close to baring his fangs at the sight before him.

Not only was Shijimi refusing to travel faster than a brisk walk, she had pasted herself to the ANBU Captain's every accessible body part. She chattered non-stop into the poor man's deafened ear, tossing out sickening words of endearment with as much fervor as Kyuubi spat insults at Tobi. Every time she rubbed her chest all over Cheetah's arm, Turtle had to hold back a furious growl, and every time she fiddled with blond, chin-length eartails, Turtle's nails carved indentations into his palms.

_Mine! _was what his entire body screamed. The proverbial storm cloud crackling over his head zapped lightning towards her.

By the time they arrived, he was about to wring her neck and dispose of her body with secret Hunter-nin techniques, but he suspected Cheetah would disapprove.

And Cheetah.

Cheetah's abundance of patience was almost drained. He sent the porcelain turtle mask concerned glances while trying to ward off the human leech and her wandering fingers. He could see the glower in his treasured Temp ANBU's eyes as her hand dropped appallingly low down his front. Seeing that Turtle was (hopefully) jealous made his predicament bearable, but even that was soon to be insufficient.

Both blondes exhaled identical sighs of relief when the Capital's entrance gates closed with a definitive clang, cutting the monstrous hair from view.

Grinning, Tiger clapped his superior on the back. "Good job, Captain. That was worse than usual, but you made it through with all body parts and clothes intact this time."

Cheetah dug his elbow deep into the sniggering ANBU's stomach and peered apprehensively at the other blonde just in time to catch a glimpse of violet through the eyeholes before he stalked off.

"Tiger, I'm doubling your stamina regimen for the next two months," he said in frustration.

The trip back to Konoha was just as tense. Turtle had smoothed his expressions with an expert veil of deception, and Cheetah failed time and again to draw the other into a conversation. Finally, when Team 9 stopped for the night, he dragged the impassive blonde away from the group.

"Captain, what's wrong?"

"Naruto." Minato snatched off both Cheetah and Turtle masks. He was dismayed to see a face devoid of emotion. "She doesn't matter."

"What are you talking about?"

"About Shimiji."

"I don't see how that's any of my concern." Naruto swept his senses around them to scan for enemy agents: all clear. He studied the evening sky for a rough forecast of tomorrow's weather: partly cloudy with 30-60% chance of rain. He enhanced his ears to identify surrounding creatures: a family of rabbits, an eagle-owl feasting on a rat, a…

"Naruto, listen to me."

His eyes swiveled back to the taller blonde.

"I know you care." Minato smoothed Naruto's windswept hair and smiled when it refused to stay down. "I'm happy that you care. Just because you are devoted to saving our village doesn't mean you have to stop caring about others."

Naruto's sky blue eyes lowered to the ground to avoid the identical pair which always left him in a spellbound daze. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Minato slowly drew him into a warm embrace, giving the Hunter-nin time to step away if he wished. "I'm yours and yours only."

"I never agreed to that," Naruto protested, but his arms rose to encircle Minato's waist automatically. "I've done nothing for you."

"That's not true, but either way, you don't have to." Minato buried his nose in soft locks and breathed in, this time noting the absence of all odors. "Just stay with me, and I stay with you. It's as simple as that," he put it plainly, afraid that anything more would discomfort the smaller blonde.

He could practically feel the inner struggle making a mess in Naruto's head.

Then, Naruto's shoulders relaxed. Minato waited nervously.

"Okay. We'll stick together until Konoha needs you," Naruto said decisively, lifting his head to reveal crystal-clear eyes. "But I'm not joining your team in a million years."

Minato let out a breathy chuckle and nudged the Hunter-nin's cute nose with his own. That was fine. Their relationship was now in what he would consider limbo, and he hadn't the slightest idea of where to go from here, but with Naruto's tentative acceptance, he had overcome another hurdle in their gradual development. He just needed to say one more thing.

Lining up his lips with Naruto's ear, Minato growled with a fierce possessiveness he never thought possible from himself, "Just keep this in mind, Naru-chan. _You are mine_."

He smirked when Naruto moan softly at the sensual declaration and 'eep' adorably at his own reaction.

* * *

As the July sun beat down on Konoha, villagers could be found lounging indoors under fans and air conditioning in thin shirts and shorts. Even Shikaku had forgone his typical grassy spot to cloud-watch through his window.

Naruto sprinted over the roofs, unaffected by the heat wave from a thin coating of cooling chakra around his body. He sympathized with shinobi who didn't know the trick, as he had suffered the same heat in the Past.

'_Kit, Kushina is approaching.'_

The Hunter-nin paused to look back, seeing a blur of red speeding his way. 'Whoa, mom is fast…'

'_Of course, she was an excellent shinobi. She never joined ANBU only due to her dislike for killing,'_ Kyuubi told him. _'Her on-field pacifism annoyed me to no end. However, it never detracted from her skills.'_

'I wouldn't call her a pacifist. I've seen her violent tendencies, and she looks intimidating as hell right now.'

The demon fox snorted. _'After all you have seen in war, how can you consider kicking a man in the crotch "violence"?'_

A chilly wave of terror washed over his mindscape. 'You have no idea how much it hurts. And I'm sure mom kicks just as hard as Sakura.'

'_Pussy.'_

Naruto harrumphed. 'Look who's talking, furball.'

Ignoring the deprecating reply from the fox, he turned to wave cheerfully at this mother, hiding his apprehension behind a bright, foxy smile. "Hello, Uzumaki-san. Nice weather today…" Naurto greeted awkwardly.

'_Shape up, kit,'_ Kyuubi said scathingly. _'Just because she's your future mother doesn't mean you need to act like her cowering child. Where is that aggravating cockiness you flaunt in your opponents' faces?'_

'I can't help it! She's like a mix of Tsunade-Babaa, Sakura, and Ayame-neechan. You cower in front of them too, hypocrite!'

'_I, King among Demons, am incapable of such lowly conduct,' _Kyuubi rebuked haughtily.

Naruto snorted and shot one last comment. 'Just keep telling yourself that. Let's see what happens when we meet Tsunade-Babaa.'

The proud fox staunchly denied having cringed at the future Godaime's name.

"Uzuhara-kun, I'm glad I found you," Kushina greeted amicably. "Can we talk?"

Naruto's eyebrows rose at the lack of resentment in her voice. Giving a slow nod, he leapt down to the street with Kushina following right behind him.

"So," Naruto stole a glance at the redhead, "what's up?"

Kushina matched the blonde's unhurried pace. "I want to ask about something Minato said a few days ago."

"Hmm? And what's that?" Warmth bubbled within him at hearing the other blonde's name.

The redhead pursed her lips when she saw his eyes light up, recalling how Minato's eyes had lit up identically as he spoke about the Hunter-nin. "He said you are a Seal Master, and that you know quite a bit on spirit sealing."

Naruto's stomach tightened uncomfortably. "He's just exaggerating."

"Minato doesn't exaggerate when discussing serious topics," she defended her love but cut herself off, realizing they were beginning to butt heads again. "Would you mind sharing some of what you know?"

Naruto calmed his heartbeat and readied himself to lie. Now he really felt like her (misbehaving) child.

"I don't know much about it at all. Spirits were actually what got me into Fuuinjutsu. I used to be terrified of ghosts," he improvised, rubbing the back of his head in convincing embarrassment, "and wanted to find a way to make sure they wouldn't get me. But there weren't very many scrolls on it, so I up. I got over my fear anyway, so it didn't matter."

Kushina arched an eyebrow to express skepticism at the childish reason to study such an intricate subject, as well as to show that she wasn't completely convinced. "Minato says you grew up in Konoha," she said but stopped for a second to clench her teeth when his eyes softened at another mention of the ANBU Captain's name. It reminded her of the same exact softening of Minato's eyes as he kept drifting off into his own world during their conversations, his mind obviously not on her. "But I have never seen you before. I keep wondering why."

She tilted her face to gauge the Hunter-nin's reaction. She saw nothing suspicious.

"When did say you returned from your long-term mission?"

Naruto said innocently, "Around a year ago. Why?" Internally, he cursed his mother for beginning to connect the dots he had tried to keep very far apart.

She stopped in the empty street.

"Around a year ago, I received bad news related to spirit sealing, or more specifically, demon sealing. And you appeared out of nowhere around a year ago." Kushina narrowed her eyes. "I have a feeling those weren't coincidences."

'She's confrontational,' he thought to Kyuubi, taken aback.

'_This is merely bullheadedness. You were the same up until several years ago,_' the fox remarked._ 'You are finally getting a taste of your own medicine.'_

"I was found and carried back from my long-term mission because of an attack during my return. I can assure you I had nothing to do with this spirit thing you're talking about," he mixed half-truths, lies, and vague reasoning into his reply.

"Aside from me and Minato, you are the only person in Konoha with enough Sealing expertise to effectively dabble in demon sealing," Kushina persisted. "Everything about you is suspicious. I think you're right in the middle of it all."

She was getting dangerously close to the truth.

Naruto presented an apologetic sigh. "I don't know what I can say to convince you otherwise, but if you want, I can help you with whatever Sealing dilemma you have," he offered with an innocent smile.

Kushina didn't reply. She couldn't help but feel conflicted. He seemed like a guileless, generous boy with no underhanded intentions. Guilt from bullying a sweet kid like him filled her, but she was desperate for answers. It was over a year ago that Kyuubi disappeared. She and Minato had spent months researching how and why and where the bloodthirsty bijuu had gone, but they barely made any headway. Everything they tried hit dead ends, and the shinobi libraries and archives had been oddly unhelpful. She was certain something major was stewing around them; Kyuubi's disappearance hinted at nothing positive.

"Uzuhara, what do you know about bijuu?"

"Bijuu, as in the tailed chakra beasts?"

Kushina nodded.

"I know there are nine of them, and they are all sealed away, in people or jars or temples."

"Do you know how they are sealed?"

"Hmm, I'm pretty sure they aren't all sealed by the same person, so there should be lots of different methods." He pretended to think hard. "My guess is that they all share three main components: containment, stability, and reinforcement. But I wonder. The more tails a bijuu has, the more power it holds. How do sealers account for those differences in their Seals? The potency of chakra grows exponentially too. Theoretically, Kyuubi would need a much stronger seal than the Ichibi."

The demon fox scoffed,_ 'Absolutely nothing about that is theoretical! Of course the requirements for sealing me are infinitely higher than that pint-sized raccoon.'_

'Oh, shut up, Kyuu.' Naruto barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes.

It was fortunate he did stop himself, as Kushina was watching him carefully, dissecting his words. Instinct told her that something about his thoughtful reply was off. What was it?

There was nothing incriminating about a Seal Master having knowledge of bijuu. He had identified the basics of the sealing formula, but that was expected of an expert. He proved himself to be a scholar by delving deeper into the topic, even providing a legitimate comparison to clarify his question.

'_Kyuubi would need a much stronger seal than the Ichibi.'_

She frowned.

Kyuubi and the Ichibi–

Kushina stopped. This. The way Uzuhara had referred to the two demons struck a chord within her. He had called the nine-tails "Kyuubi" but the one-tail "the Ichibi." It was as if he was referring to Kyuubi as someone he knew.

Was she thinking too deeply into this?

"Do you know anything about the nine-tails?" Kushina asked.

Naruto tilted his head questioningly, unsure as to why she was openly referring to the demon who was supposed to be secret.

"Well, obviously, he's the most powerful bijuu. He was created from Juubi, the ten-tails. According to some scrolls I found in Kumogakure, Kyuubi tends to appear in areas where humans are at their worst. I bet the most likely place it'll show up next is Iwa, right in the middle of their civil war."

"And the Ichibi?"

"Mmm, I think right now, Ichibi is sealed in Suna with the Kazekage. People there think it's the spirit of a corrupt priest."

"Uzuhara. What did you do with Kyuubi?" Kushina hooked on immediately.

Naruto gave her a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

"You called Kyuubi a 'he' but Ichibi an 'it', as if you know him personally. Did you have anything to do with Kyuubi's disappearance?"

His eyes widened. "Kyuubi disappeared? Are you sure?" Suddenly, a kunai was pressed to his neck.

"I was the Kyuubi's jinchuuriki. Of course I'm sure," she said, annoyed. "He disappeared around the time you showed up in Konoha. And you were conveniently nearby when I lost the last of Kyuubi's chakra."

"You're Kyuubi's jinchuuriki?" He asked as he jumped back deftly from her threatening figure.

"Hokage-sama says not to worry, but how can I not when a powerful demon suddenly vanishes?" She brought her hands together. "He's covering for something or someone. This is the first time I doubt his judgment."

Chains shot towards Naruto.

He leapt out of the way and jumped onto the roof of a surrounding building. "Uzumaki-san, please calm down!" He dodged again, running towards a training field to minimize potential damage.

"You are a threat to Konoha." She followed launching several shuriken. "I can't let you run free."

"I'm not an enemy to Konoha," he exclaimed.

"Either way, I know you are the cause of this." Naruto blocked another attack. "Stay still, you bastard!"

'Oh my god, mom has gone crazy.'

'_She is rash, but she means well,'_ Kyuubi cackled. _'She, like you, only wants to protect her home. However, she has not yet learned subtlety; I am thankful that you learned to control your actions before killing yourself by stupidly charging into fights.'_

'This is not the time to be laughing, you oversized hamster!'

Naruto extended chakra whips to restrain the chains, faltering only for a moment when Kyuubi roared his outrage. That falter gave Kushina the opening to catch his ankle and dump him over the edge of the roof.

Not one to go down without a fight, Naruto snagged the redhead's with ankle with his wires and dragged her with him as he crashed to the ground.

"Oomph!"

Both Uzumaki froze at the yell which came from neither of the two.

They slowly directed wide eyes to the small – possibly dead – figure squished under them and leapt apart immediately when it squirmed.

"Kid, are you okay?" Naruto asked anxiously, helping the boy up to a sitting position and frantically checking for injuries.

The blonde abruptly snapped his head to the boy's face – or more specifically, the hair.

It was a…

Naruto did a double-take.

No way…

He leaned in for a better look.

His jaw dropped open.

The small boy wore a purple long-sleeved shirt, brown baggy pants, and an oversized pair of geeky, green glasses. He was holding tightly onto two large scrolls on…intermediate taijutsu?

Naruto squinted. Maybe his eyes were failing him. The oddly dressed kid couldn't be anyone but the miniature version of Maito Gai, the Green Beast of Konoha! But…but…!

'Kyuu, am I hallucinating?'

'_If so, then we are trapped in the same hallucination,' _Kyuubi said, equally dumbfounded. _'Perhaps the last thirteen months were a figment of our combined insanity, all leading up to this one nightmarish vision.'_

'Shouldn't you have known about him through mom?'

'_It seems he had already donned his green spandex and orange when they met.'_

The boy mashed the slipping glasses back onto his nose with the palm of his hand.

That was the last straw. The Hunter-nin couldn't hold his shaking shoulders anymore and submitted to a fit of laughter, almost falling on top of mini-Gai again.

"Uzuhara-kun, are _you_ alright?" Kushina asked with concern.

Naruto struggled to answer but broke down in another fit as he got another glimpse of the…geek.

"Mister, have you fallen into the Phase of Senility?"

Naruto blinked. "You're Gai, right?"

"Of course! I am Maito Gai, a devoted student in the Art of Wisdom!" He puffed out his chest proudly. "And who are you, mister?"

"I'm Uzuhara Naruto," Naruto answered with a quirked eyebrow. Student in the 'Art of Wisdom'? What the hell happened to Youth and all that junk?

"Oh, how wonderful is it to be cohro…coherence from you! I fear you lost your Power of Wisdom to consequence to neurolo…gol…ogical damage before the Age of Ripeness. However, it is relieved to be proved wrong once."

Naruto winced at every grammatical blunder. "Gai-kun…how old are you?"

"I am at the unfortunate nine of age."

"Why are you trying to speak like a ninety-year-old scholar?"

"With wisdom, strength come," Gai answered sagely, his shiny black hair glinting as he nodded without noticing the grammar error. "I must train my mind vig…vigroarusly."

"It's 'vigorously'…" Naruto supplied at seeing Gai's lost expression. "Sooooo, what do you think of the power of youth?"

"The Power of Youth?" Gai looked at him strangely. "Youth is a time of tragic naivility and inclapabolity."

"'Naivety and incapability'," Naruto corrected under his breath. "So, being youthful is bad?"

Gai nodded firmly. "If I am wrong, I shall read one hundred scrolls hanging upside-down from a tree," a thoughtful pause, "…naked!"

Naruto cringed. 'At least this awful quirk hasn't changed.'

'_Yes, but everything else is the opposite of the adult,'_ Kyuubi said dryly. _'Could it be that your shoddy seal has hurled us into an alternate universe instead of the past?'_

Naruto ignored the insult and opted to ask the boy what he was studying.

"What a Wisely question!" Mini-Gai exclaimed overenthusiastically. "My studies now re…relorve…um, _revolve_ around taijutsu training. I just finished studying of mus…muscular development!"

It dawned on Naruto – after finally giving up on the abysmal grammar – that this was why Gai became such a knowledgeable shinobi in adulthood. He had been a study maniac during childhood.

But there was one unanswered question.

He was almost afraid to bring it up.

"Gai, what do you think of spandex?" He asked hesitantly and instantly regretted mentioning it when the boy's eyes beamed like the torturous summer sun.

"Oh! It's the fabric of Wisely deities!" Gai exclaimed in a loud, squeaky shout, reverting to partial child-speak in his excitement. "It fits your body really good. I do not trip like _this_ pants. It is so stretchyyy!" He continued dreamily. "I already have orange leg-warmers. They are perfect with a green jumpsuit!"

Suddenly, he looked like he was about to burst into tears. "Mum won't let me buy one. She says it's bad for everyone's eyes." His face set into a determined pout. "Dad says I can get it when I'm genin. I'm going to pass this year! And when I am genin, I am going to find my eternal rival!"

He hit his signature "nice guy" pose, giving a thumbs-up, winking, and grinning widely to expose the gap where a baby tooth had fallen out.

'Oh my kami, this is scarier than that time mini-Kakashi went off on a rant at us for being five minutes late. And Gai's pose isn't even half developed.'

'_I surprisingly agree with you,' _the demon fox said dryly._ 'Back in my angry days, I would have squashed this clown under my foot.'_

'I guess he hasn't met Kakashi yet. That's probably when he picks up his Youthfulness spiel.' The blonde grinned mischievously. 'Should speed up their rivalry?'

'_Kit, I do not wish this suffering on anyone,' _Kyuubi grumbled with unexpected compassion. _'Perhaps you should focus your efforts on the jumpsuit. That would reduce everyone's pain.'_

Naruto relented without complaint.

"Hey, Gai-kun. Do you _really_ like the spandex jumpsuit?" Gai bounced in happiness. "Did you know? Spandex is very toxic to produce. It uses toxic chemicals." The boy scrunched his thick brow. "Do you ever think about where the left over chemicals go?" A shake of the bowl-cut head. "They get dumped in a river far, far away from Fire Country so that our forests don't get contamina…poisoned. But think about the animals and fish over there. Their homes are being ruined by spandex!"

Gai's eyes bulged comically. "No! What a tragic fate! Is this all because of my beloved spandex? How unwisely to overlook such a crushi…crucial information! Youthfulness has clouding my mind,"

"Gai-kun, you will be okay," Kushina soothed. "Maybe you can find something else to wear that's green." She sent Naruto a relieved grin, obviously having heard of the dreadful spandex jumpsuit obsession.

'_Kit, that was one of your more intelligent lies,' _Kyuubi praised.

'He doesn't need to know about Neutralization Ninjutsu. Hopefully, by the time he finds out, he'll have forgotten spandex.'

"Gai-kun, the world hasn't ended." He looked into the little boy's devastated eyes. "You can find something else. Uzumaki-san can help you with fashion advice."

"That's right, I would love to help," Kushina reassured. "Let's go shopping once you become genin."

To both their horror, tears of joy began pouring from Gai's eyes. "Uzuhaki-san, Uzumara-san, how generously of you! I shall run two hundred times around the library with fifty books on my head in your honor!"

"There's no need for that. We're happy to help," Naruto said hastily. "…and it's Uzumaki and Uzuhara."

Gai gasped. "What a youthful mistake. I must do three hundred pushups with fifty books on my back…in my underwear!"

"Okay, okay, whatever floats your boat," the blonde interrupted before the boy could come up with anything worse. "Uzumaki-san and I need to leave for an important appointment. We'll see you around!" He grabbed Kushina and shunshin-ed them across the village.

They stood wordlessly on top of the Hokage Mouintain, staring at each other expressionlessly. Then, Kushina's lips twitched.

Naruto's did as well.

Suddenly, they were both laughing.

"Maito Gai is the weirdest kid I've ever met," Kushina wheezed.

"You just," Naruto took a shallow breath, "promised to go shopping with him."

"You're coming with us."

"Hah! You'll have to find me first."

"Maybe he won't pass."

"No chance. He's already studying chuunin level texts. There's no way he won't."

"Then you're coming. It's for the good of Konoha."

"Why do you think I always wear shinobi uniform? My fashion sense is almost as bad as Gai's."

"So you also wore spandex?"

"No! It was a regular neon-orange jumpsuit…"

"Eww. You're definitely coming. I can think of a few pieces that would look hot on you!"

Naruto blanched. "You just squealed. I'm _not_ going shopping with a girl. It's more exhausting than endurance training."

"Suck it up, blondie. I'll find you one way or another."

"I don't know what's worse. Shopping with Gai or shopping with you."

"You'll be doing both at once."

Naruto shuddered.

Kushina's smirk softened at the distressed Hunter-nin.

"Uzuhara…"

Naruto looked curiously at the redhead's subdued tone.

"Let's start over." Kushina extended a hand. "My name is Uzumaki Kushina, Jounin, just turned twenty, ramen addict."

The blonde slowly reached out to take the hand. "My name is…Uzuhara Naruto." He wished he could tell his mother his real name. "Hunter-nin, nineteen, ramen addict."

"Uzuhara-san, do you want to get Ichiraku ramen for dinner tonight?"

Naruto's face split into a massive smile. "See who can eat more bowls?"

Kushina's face transformed to match. "You're on!"

Then she fell silent and bit her lip. "I'm sorry about before. Everyone tells me I'm too rash."

"It's alright. I'm the same. You were doing it for a good cause." Naruto lifted his hand to pat her back, but pulled back before it made contact.

"I don't know what to do anymore. I'm out of leads. Maybe it has something to do with the Stone conflict. Or what if it escaped."

"Um." Naruto nervously as he swept their surroundings for chakra signatures. "Can you take my word for it? That everything is fine, and you don't have to worry."

Kushina's eyes sharpened. "So I was right! You do have something to do with him."

The time traveler's shoulders dropped. He wanted to tell her everything – everything about himself and how much he already loved her, even when they had been fighting. "Y-yeah, but Hokage-Jijii and I have things under control. Fuzzball is fine, but I can't say anything more."

"Why not?" She turned to him indignantly.

"Because there are powerful enemies searching for him, and Konoha will fall if they get his power. The less you know, the safer it is for both you and this village."

"You're certain about this?" she asked, dissatisfied by his answer but slowly being swayed by the earnest look on his face.

Naruto nodded. "We will tell you everything, but not now. Dangerous times are coming, and we're doing what we can to turn things in Konoha's favor."

"Does Minato know?"

"…No."

Kushina clicked her tongue in disapproval. "Uzuhara, how can I trust you if you're keeping secrets from even Minato?"

"I don't know; I have no way to show you," he sighed. "You could talk to Hokage-Jijii again. Maybe he'll know how to explain."

Kushina studied the enigmatic blonde's genuinely remorseful expression and came to a decision she hoped she would not regret.

"Naruto-kun, what's coming?"

Naruto gazed over the peaceful village below.

"…hell."

* * *

He and Kushina parted after talking through slurps of ramen, eating a total of thirteen bowls between them. They had immediately bonded over jokes, arguments, and laughs, pretty much making as much ruckus as possible between two people. The two Uzumakis remained slightly strained on the Kyuubi and war, but that aside, they became fast friends from countless similarities.

Naruto meandered back towards ANBU Headquarters, whistling merrily.

Today had been a good day. He had gotten another glimpse of how different some people from his Past had been two decades younger. Then he had finally befriended his mother.

There was one last thing which could complete his day, but that was impossible since he was away on a mission…

Naruto smiled when he felt the seal on his neck warm.

A moment later, he was being hugged tightly by his favorite person.

"Naru-chan, I'm home."

"You were only gone for a few days, moron," Naruto teased. "You're even back early."

Minato enjoyed the feel of arms wrapping around him just as tightly, belying how much the other blonde had missed him too.

"Guess what, as of today, Kushina-san and I are friends!" Naruto shared happily. "We just had a ramen eating contest."

Minato tightened his arms. "Kushina? How did that happen?"

"We fought again but ended up saving Konoha from the terror that is Maito Gai in green spandex."

"What do you think of her?"

"She's awesome. She was close to tying me in our contest, but I managed to eat one more bowl. Next week, she's going to show me some tricks to figuring out genjutsu. She laughed in my face when I told her I can't cast a decent one to save my life." Naruto looked at Minato with large, expectant eyes.

Minato chuckled at the unvoiced question. "But you can break out of any genjutsu in the world, right?"

Naruto grinned and blew playfully at an eartail.

"That's right! I can even break out of Sharingan genjutsu. That took me ages to figure out, but I showed them up!" He thought back fondly on Sasuke's confounded expression the first time he had done so. "Still, she's a lot of fun to hang out with."

"Do you like Kushina more than me?"

"Huh?" Naruto tilted his head, puzzled. "Of course not. Why would you think that?"

Minato pressed his lips to the smaller blonde's forehead and smiled when Naruto didn't freeze.

"Nevermind. I'm being stupid."

Naruto hummed dismissively, guessing it was just another one of his friend's peculiar, territorial quirks.

"By the way, Ero-sennin got back yesterday. He'll be at the meeting tomorrow night. Jijii and Sakumo-sempai are going to be useless once they see the new Icha Icha books." Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Aren't you supposed to be writing one for Hokage-sama?"

Minato laughed when Naruto gagged.

"Don't worry, I'll help you with it." Minato winked at him. "But first, I need to report the mission. This was a quick detour to see your smile," he said, loosening his arms reluctantly.

There was no question that he was completely besotted. No matter how tainted by darkness Naruto thought of himself, Minato saw him as Konoha's secret treasure, lovable and precious and so, so strong.

He was _never_ going to let his sweet little blonde go.

Tipping Naruto's chin up, Minato leaned down to swipe a quick kiss from those enticing lips.

Stroking his Hiraishin seal on the startled blonde's neck, he whispered, "I'll find you later, Naru-chan," and vanished in a flash of dazzling yellow.

Naruto's lips were as soft as he had always imagined.

* * *

**A/N:** Is Minato being too forward? ;)

Next chapter: How will Naruto react?; Kage Kaigi; Jiraiya's thoughts; Kakashi – cute and snarky as always.

Is anyone coming to New York for this weekend's Comic Con?

_October 10, 2012_


	18. Mental

**A/N: **It's the one-year anniversary of Escape Artist today. I can't express how sorry I am for the 7-month delay. It was never my intention to neglect this story for so long. Thank you so much for all your encouragement. Maybe I'm cramming too much into each chapter – I'll try to shorten them moving forward.

I would like to shout out a big thank you to Clams-and-Rainbows for her beautiful fanart! I can't get over how pretty Naruto's eyes are. Please check it out on DeviantArt:

www {dot} mangafeelovesmangas {dot} deviantart {dot} com/art/Fanart-for-Escape-Artist-338404189

**Summary:** Seal master Uzumaki Naruto finally perfected a battle-use seal to rewind time for short moments. What the idiot forgot was that he tended to overdo things when in a pinch. **MinaNaru, shounen-ai,** timetravel, angst.

* * *

**Warning:** Minor adult themes.

* * *

**Chapter 18: Mental**

"Hmph! They just don't understand the honor of having me – the great, sexy, virile connoisseur of women – bestow my attention upon them." Jiraiya harrumphed indignantly as he stomped down an empty street.

"Granted, my sexiness is lacking its full power without my glorious hair." He gingerly felt the short spikes on his head which had refused to grow even with his hair jutsu. "It's all that snot-nosed punk's fault. I haven't had hair this short since I was born!" He kicked an empty can with a huff.

It clanked down the street to stop behind a familiar figure kneeling limply on the ground.

"Hey, kid! I have a bone to pick with you."

The figure remained stock still.

Jiraiya peered around curiously at the blonde's face. He quirked an eyebrow.

"Anyone home?"

No response.

"Brat, your cheeks are redder than a tomato."

A twitch.

"And close that pretty little mouth of yours."

Naruto's teeth snapped together and his flush deepened. His eyes flicked up at Jiraiya.

"Ohhh, look at the magnificent blush. Did something happen? Something good?" The perverted shinobi's grin turned into a triumphant smirk when Naruto's eyes darted to the ground.

"N-no," the blonde denied shakily.

"So you're kneeling on the ground like a star-struck girl with weak knees and rosy cheeks for no reason at all?"

Naruto wet his lips nervously, then jerked his tongue back in the instant he remembered what had touched them last. "Um, well…"

"Spit it out – there's no need to be shy."

Naruto shot Jiraiya a glare.

"Does–," the blonde took a deep breath, "does Minato have…homosexual tendencies?"

The smirk returned. "O-hohoho, so my frigid student _did_ do something!"

"Just answer the question," Naruto snapped.

Unperturbed by the sharp demand, Jiraiya leaned back to take a good look at the dazed blonde in front of him. "To my disappointment, Minato was too fixated on training to have _any_ sexual tendencies," he shook his head with an exaggerated sigh.

"But recently," Jiraiya let out a perverted giggle, "he seems to have developed some very _potent_ ones."

Listening with reluctant but rapt attention, Naruto's fading blush returned full-force at the suggestive emphasis on 'potent'. "O-oh, I see…"

"And towards one specific person."

'_Mom,'_ murmured the corner of his mind in denial, while the opposite corner hissed jealously.

"Kid, you know exactly what I mean. Don't faint on me now." Ufu! This was going to be grand!

Naruto's jaw worked up and down. Jiraiya watched gleefully as comprehension dunked him in a cold splash.

"Oh…"

"That's right, keep going."

"OH." Naruto's brain short-circuited.

"Well done. Now be a good man and chase after the unlucky idiot who fell for a bigger idiot."

Silence fell between them in the deserted street.

"B-b-but what about mom?" Slight hysteria colored the blonde's high-pitched voice. "And I told you, he's my _father_!"

"So?" Jiraiya said bluntly. "You don't treat him as your father. The fact that you haven't run halfway to Suna by now means your subconscious isn't averse to it."

"How would you know anything about my subconscious? I'm sure it's a passing thing. And he'll get over it and marry mom and have me and become the ultimate role model for Konoha." Naruto's subconscious hissed once more before Naruto buried it under layers of mental steel.

Jiraiya guffawed. "A passing thing? Nitwit, Minato's been after you for months."

The large man eyed the time traveler with a smirk. "Let me take a guess. That Uzumaki wildcat is your mother." Jiraiya snorted when Naruto nodded absently. "I don't know how **Your** parents got together. Minato always said her rowdiness scared him."

"But everyone told me they were the perfect couple."

Jiraiya gave Naruto a skeptical look. "Perfect couple? Hah! They're close friends, but Minato's instinctive reaction is to hide." He paused thoughtfully. "Hmm, but it's gotten better in the last year or two since she started to calm down. But still, I can't see them together unless she bullies him into it."

'_Kit, snap out of it and silence him. The frog's monologue is disturbing my peace.'_ Kyuubi's sneer slipped through the mental fog.

Naruto chuckled weakly. This was too much for him to absorb. Minato liked him?

Naruto blushed.

"Ufufufu, perfect research material," the leering author muttered to himself. "Yes, quite a lot of potential."

The blonde furrowed his brow in confusion. "Wha? 'Research material?'"

Jiraiya smirked.

"I uncovered a new juicy genre. _(Drumrolllll)_ Homosexual romance!" He announced proudly, leaping into a ridiculous pose. "Sales have been low since people are only just warming up to the idea, but I'm sure it'll be a huge hit once they realize how _delicious_ it can be."

"Hohoho~ I even started my own publishing company since no one would accept my submissions, those short-sighted bigots. Icha Icha is on hiatus so I can focus on my new series: Iro Iro Paradise!" The toad sage whipped out two books. The light blue book had two hand-drawn men shyly holding hands and the yellow book had a man stroking his companion's cheek.

"What? You don't know the significance of the title? How bland a life you lead, but that's expected of an ignorant kid like you. 'Iro' refers to (sexual) pleasure. Unfortunately, between two men, you have to start out subtle," he explained with a disturbing pout, paying little attention to the blonde who was slowly sinking into himself. "Oh, the potential, especially if I add in a third wheel."

Naruto stared at his future teacher dazedly as dark as chaotic clouds tossed within his mind, more turbulent than it had been in months.

Jiraiya writing gay literature? Jiraiya starting a company? Jiraiya putting _Icha Icha on hold_? What the hell had he done to the past?

He swallowed the insane giggle at the back of his throat. _Oh god,_ _I'm losing it. Again._

He tried to dig up Akashiori's unflappable pragmatism. However, the Hunter-nin persona merely shook him off, warning Naruto to quit bothering him. Naruto then turned to the Haikage persona who raised an indifferent eyebrow.

'We have no desire to tangle ourselves in your nonsensical predicaments. Leave our traits alone. While you are busy flirting with Namikaze, we are in the midst of crafting a strategy to deal with Amegakure.'

'What do you mean by flirting? You're both parts of me. I can use our personality traits anytime I want.'

'Many of our traits are not inherent in 'Uzumaki Naruto'. You and Kyuubi molded Akashiori's traits to preserve your sanity, and you formed mine to deal with this war. If you wish not to deal with Namikaze, put together another persona that would be happy to.'

'I know that! Oh kami, I'm going to have a mental breakdown.'

Haikage's lips thinned in irritation. 'This is nothing compared to previous disturbances to our sanity. Uzumaki, just accept his advances so you can return to your work. We have deadlines to meet,' the leader commanded as he faded to a buzz in the back of Naruto's mind.

Naruto gaped at his personas' easy acceptance of Minato's affections. 'Kyuu, my mind must be broken…' the time traveler lamented. 'Should I check to see if my mindscape cracked again?'

Only marginally better composed, he tried to hone in on the more outrageous aspects of the mind-boggling conversation with the toad sage.

"Gay porn is what you wasted your time on in Kusa?"

"Philistine!" Jiraiya reared back, hugging his books protectively. "This gem isn't a waste of time. Male bathhouses are a treasure trove of information, especially when men gloat about their accomplishments like it's a penis size competition (which, I'll have you know, I always win hands down). I gathered more intel with one-third of an Iro Iro than a whole Icha Icha."

Even more delirious than before, blonde latched onto a single thought for distraction.

"Ero-sennin. Are you a closet gay?"

The world froze. Jiraiya's jaw dropped and eyes bulged like gulf balls.

"_What?"_ The furious skirt-chaser thundered. "A closet gay? You traveled with me for three years, and you accuse me of being a closet _gay_?"

Naruto bit the inside of his cheek to stifle a weak snicker, which was a nice change from insane giggles.

"I have never been accused of something so absurd in my life. That's like saying that frosty little Hatake shrimp is the greatest supporter of Icha Icha. Impossible! Just because I'm having trouble picking up women because of this hair doesn't mean I'll ever turn to men. I crave large globes of supple flesh, curvaceous hips, and the lovely feminine scent of the sacred flower begging to be taken."

Naruto's face dropped between his knees, and he laughed until tears ran down his cheeks, barely able to breathe, almost hyperventilating.

"Ha ha, haha ha–" he choked on a hiccup, "you have no idea…ha…" Midnight blue eyes flashed red for a split second as he mumbled hysterically. "Ero-sensei is a closet gay… What am I doing? Everything is screwed up. Minato doesn't like mom. Instead, he likes…um. You're spying on men. The Uchiha invited me for tea. The grocery store owner gave me a discount on fresh milk…"

Fresh tears trickled down his scarred cheeks. "But even after all that, the war is still going to happen, and people are still going to die. I don't know what's going on. I can't keep track of all the changes anymore. Things are changing too quickly. Everything is _so_ _different_." _Maybe I should go back and do it over again._

Jiraiya gazed down at the broken time traveler with pity.

"Naruto, that's right," Jiraiya said sharply. "No one will ever be the same, and life will never become as you knew it – all because of you."

He grimaced guiltily when the trembling shoulders flinched. Nonetheless, the young man needed to understand.

"But isn't that your goal? Aren't you working and training night and day so that things _will_ change?"

The splotchy face looked up.

"You told me you want to save Konoha from the pain of war and loss. You said your past is worse than I could imagine. Isn't that right?"

Naruto bared his teeth in almost animalistic hostility as he recalled the brutality and death.

"Then wake up, boy!" The toad sage snapped harshly. "Prancing around the five countries, making friends with everyone you meet – you're a thousand times dumber than I thought if you expected nothing but the bad to change."

The blonde whimpered at the reprimand, too startled to form a retort.

Kyuubi rumbled comfortingly. _'He is correct, child. You shoulder a heavy responsibility. In turn, you must shoulder the heavy consequences – the gains, the losses, and the unforeseen.'_

Naruto slumped mid-sniffle.

'_Changes in Namikaze and frog have shaken you, as they were not by your initiation. As your influence spreads, waves of change will touch the world unpredictably. Take this incident as a lesson in awareness and humility. It is impossible to hold the world on a tight leash.'_

Naruto closed his eyes bitterly. "You're right. You're always right," he muttered, uncertain as to whom he was speaking. "Having both hindsight and foresight is a serious mind fuck."

"Your Past isn't our future anymore, kid."

'_We have a vague outline of history based on your life, but our purpose is to deviate from that course.'_

"Nothing is set in stone."

'_We must move forward with a definitive objective and tolerance for flexibility.'_

"That's what you get for fiddling with time."

'_The frog is correct. Time is never something to be trifled with. It has always been the foulest tool of evil in our greatest enemies.'_

"I doubt anyone else is as brainless but intelligent enough to actually travel back in time."

'_I would be proud if not for the foolishness of it all.'_

"Stop blubbering. Get over yourself and–"

"Aaarg! I get it, I get it," he scrubbed away the last of his tears. "Both of you just shut up!"

Silence.

"Both?"

Naruto looked innocently at his future godfather, who leaned in with squinted eyes.

"Naruto… Is there something else you're hiding from me?"

"Erm- nope, nothing at all." The blonde scrambled to his feet and shuffled backwards, waving his hands in front of him.

"Naruto…" Jiraiya's voice dropped ominously.

"Ero-sennin. Why are you getting all parent-y all of a sudden?" Naruto whined evasively.

'_Fool,'_ Kyuubi covered his eyes with a tail, sighing at his bumbling jinchuuriki. _'This must be why the monkey gave permission specifically for the frog. He predicted your loose mouth and his student's acute observation – Just tell him. His persistence will outlast any attempt at evasion.'_

"Come on, kid. Sharing is caring. I told you inside information about my new series." Before Naruto could argue, the toad sage continued, "If you don't tell me, I'll drag you to next month's Super-Perverts Unite Book Club as the main attraction, ufufufu."

"You wouldn't!"

"You know I would."

'_Tell him, kit,'_ Kyuubi urged. _'He will be a useful ally. If he is the same frog we knew, he will accept and protect you. Otherwise, we can kill him.'_

"I'm sure they'll appreciate the view, especially the Naruko form."

Surrendering under the threat, Naruto divulged the secret of his bijuu to only the second person in this time. It was a relief to confide someone who knew his origins, like a small weight had fallen off his shoulders. He felt a little less alone in this foreign world.

After a long contemplative silence, Jiraiya settled a large hand on the blonde's head. "See? That wasn't so hard." His eyes raked over the six scars marking him as the Kyuubi's jinchuuriki.

"Makes me want to grind Minato to dust."

Jiraiya laughed at Naruto's protests and the faint blush that resurfaced.

"I know, he's not the same Minato, blah blah blah." He bopped Naruto's head with his fist. "You're too forgiving for your own good." He sighed. "Sorry I wasn't there for you the first time around. I'm ashamed of myself, but this me is different."

Naruto's breath hitched.

"I'm honored to be your godfather, Naruto. No promises about my parenting skills, though. I'll do my best, but it's strange that you're only what, ten, fifteen years younger than me."

"As your godfather, it's my duty to be involved in your life, to guide you along your growth. To do that, you'll need to open up to me," he said in all seriousness. "Tell me in greatest detail. what did Minato do to you?" Jiraiya's face morphed into a lewd grin as a notepad materialized in his hand. "Don't leave anything out."

Naruto sputtered.

'_Idiot. He certainly knows how to kill the mood,' _Kyuubi commented dryly.

"Pervert, he's my father!"

Jiraiya picked his ear lazily. "What's the big deal? You're gay, he's gay, why not go all the way? That little detail just makes the debauchery so much better." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Come on."

"I'm not gay," Naruto growled.

"Hmm, yes yes," the toad summoner scribbled across the paper, "gay and in denial…good basis for a complex drama. This will be a masterpiece."

"Jiraiya!"

"Ooo, and what a voice. Perfect for screaming in steamy throes of ecstasy. But that'll have to come later. First, one needs to make a move. Did Minato feel you up? Propose sharing a bed? Confess a role play fantasy? Well?"

"Ew no, he only kissed me!"

Naruto clapped a hand over his blabbing mouth as the toad sage nodded enthusiastically. "Ahh yes, courage is the driving force of budding love! Nice start, my apprentice. A little tame, but still a nice start. Minato puts all his heart in everything he does; you need to reciprocate with just as much conviction. I suggest you take him skinny dipping. Perfectly innocent."

Even as the blonde palmed his bright red face, he silently thanked Jiraiya for attempting to ease the issue.

"He's not your father, so just enjoy the ride. Ufufufu, he's my apprentice; I'm sure he'll be an excellent ride. What does your tenant say about this? Did he suggest anything? I'm sure centuries of experience should give him some very _creative_ ideas."

"Kyuubi…" Naruto groaned, "says that you're a depraved good-for-nothing who needs to stop corrupting me with inane rubbish."

Jiraiya arched a white eyebrow. "Protective little bugger, isn't he?"

"_And I will scatter your entrails across this pitiful village if you utter that nonsense again, frog,"_ the demon fox snarled through Naruto's mouth.

From his mindscape, Naruto watched, fascinated, as his own body backed the toad sage into a wall with a clawed hand aimed at his wide chest.

"I guess that's my cue to leave. Lots of women to savor and sake to ravish…or the other way around," he smiled nervously. "Be sure to keep me updated on the progress between you two lovebirds!" Jiraiya ducked under razor-sharp nails swiping at him and puffed away.

"_Tch, that thing would have been rancid frog meat anyway," _Kyuubi grumbled, ignoring his host's mental eye roll.

* * *

A circle of men watched as the figure in black stalked into the room, like a general with the formidable gait of a predator. He commanded respect from the powerful shinobi who had solemnly gathered this windy night.

"Now that we are all present, let us begin. Jiraiya, report," Haikage said in a soft but deadly voice that made them all straighten in their seats. No matter how many times they began the Kage Kaigi's this way, the voice of their mysterious leader never failed to put them on their toes. His confidence inspired an unwavering belief that they could succeed.

Jiraiya stood and bowed to the black mask before clearing his throat.

"During the last four months in Kusa, I operated in both plain sight and underground. As I was researching for the Iro Iro…," Perverted glints entered three pairs of eyes, "I heard scattered whispers of fraudulent activity."

"Throughout the civilian population and government officers, there has been evidence of inconsistencies in political and economic developments over the last two years. Some of the mandates by the council are undoubtedly beneficial, but the chain effects of those actions are weakening defenses and shifting power to less savory groups."

"That is not all," Jiraiya continued. "As I was researching for the Iro Iro…" Again, perverted glints reappeared in three pairs of eyes until Haikage's killing intent snapped them out of their fantasies. Minato and Naruto sighed at the men's antics. Perverts through and through.

Jiraiya coughed. "There is gossip among government officials that several members have changed recently."

Akashiori leaned forward with interest. "Changed…as in changes to behavior?"

"Concerns from peers about personality changes. My research showed changes in habits, opinions, political agenda, etcetera. All very small and subtle – everything in this business is subtle – but this gives me reason to believe we have imposters and bribed officials mixed in the system."

"Hn, amateurs," Akashiori and Aka said simultaneously.

Sakumo snorted. "Easy for you to say, oh great Masters of Deception." It was unreal how none of Akashiori's active undercover Kage Bunshin in Iwa had been discovered yet. And Aka had just flushed out another Iwa spy among the merchants. "You can't compare your infiltration expertise to that of normal people."

"And yet, our little Naruto struggles to conceal a single emotion," Akashiori pointed out dryly.

Naruto shot him a withering glare and opened his mouth to protest–

"Men."

Everyone froze when Haikage's firm voice cut through the room.

"Ehehe… To sum it up, there are signatures being forged and dirty money exchanging hands. You can find the full report coded in my two Iro Iro books."

"Jiraiya-san," Haikage's voice from behind the black mask lacked all humor, "please submit a proper report within two days. That should give you enough time to explain the Sawada policy without Sagawa-kun masturbating on a vibrator."

Blood dribbled out of Sarutobi's nose.

* * *

Two hours later, the Kage Kaigi came to a close.

"There is still much to do," Haikage told them as he stood. "Hatake-san, continue monitoring Sasori of Suna. He has not shown aggressive tendencies, most likely because Chiyo's light punishment has kept him loyal to the Kazekage, but his skill in offensive puppeteering remains a potential threat and advantage."

Haikage continued around the table.

"Yamanaka-san, per your report on Danzou's profile, I need you and Nara-san to map out his next moves. He has been rather smug since the Councilman overlooking border control died in an accident. We were barely able to turn down his _generous_ offer to take over the duties. Danzou will not forfeit easily."

"Aka, you know what to do with the new Iwa spy in the medical research department."

The red-masked Hunter-nin sneered.

"Namikaze-san and Uzuhara-san, complete the advanced barrier and restriction seals; there are still many more on the list. There will also be several scouting and infiltration missions."

"Jiraiya-san, pinpoint the impostors in Kusa. Akashiori will replace several with clones."

"Finally, Hokage-sama, Akashiori, and I are still deliberating on how to handle Amegakure and the hostile sectors of River Country. The tentative plan is for Akashiori to assassinate an officer in Midori-Kawa town's council. The man has been dealing with a minor Ame gang for extra coins in his pocket. This is an opportunity to turn a critical location against Ame."

"We have an estimated one and a half years until the war commences. Our operations must be conducted subtly. We cannot give Iwa fuel to attack early. They know we have begun to move our pieces, but they are currently occupied with the civil war. If Konoha is too forceful in our actions, the Tsuchikage will utilize the threat of a mutual enemy to unite the village and launch an attack."

Haikage assessed his most trusted men.

"Kaigi adjourned."

* * *

Sarutobi, Naruto, and his three personas remained in their seats as the room cleared.

Aka shook his head tiredly. "Iwa spies are everywhere. Kumo, too. Many have been in deep cover as sleeper agents for years. No wonder Konoha suffered so much damage in the Third War."

"This time, we will minimize all attack on the village," Haikage said firmly. "Preparations are progressing on schedule."

"Progressing on schedule?" Akashiori interrupted. "We focus all our time on defense and preventative measures, but what about the offensive? We have barely touched that."

"The safety of the village is a priority. There is little chance of the enemy reaching Konoha if our border defense is solid and the enemy is incapacitated."

"To defeat the enemy means taking the offensive," Akashiori argued.

"The opportunity to defeat the enemy is provided by the enemy himself," Haikage countered. "We must induce the enemy into acting first. Haste will be their downfall, but it will be ours if we are overly aggressive."

"Staying on the defense will drag out the war." The spiral mask seemed to churn as Akashiori leaned forward insistently. "We are trying to minimize casualties. Shortening its duration is the only way to accomplish that."

"Are you saying we should thrust our soldiers into unfamiliar territory?" Haikage's voice rose in volume. "Rock Country terrain is covered in isolated grounds. We cannot storm Iwa without dividing and endangering our forces."

"Then develop long range attacks! We have boosted our shinobi's skills, but what else can we teach them? Attack from afar. That is just as effective, if not more."

"And leave massive casualties on the Iwa side?" Haikage said in a deadly growl. "To shatter and destroy the enemy should be our last course of action."

"That was effective in the Past. With the Hiraishin, Minato was able to decimate the Iwa army and force them to surrender."

"So you wish to place that heavy burden on him once more? How selfish," Haikage said scathingly. "The guilt of slaughtering hundreds is not something any man, however great, should have to carry."

Akashiori stood abruptly, his chair scraping loudly across the floor. "Then we–"

"Calm yourselves!" The Sandaime Hokage barked.

Sarutobi watched as the two men's postures instantly fell under tight control.

It was fascinating how Naruto could have such contrasting views by having different intrinsic characteristics and holding different positions of power. They were truly separate people within one mind.

Haikage saw the world as a general, directing from afar and responsible for all lives; he studied the big picture on the metaphorical chess board. Although his outward appearance was any shinobi's worst nightmare, he led with benevolent intentions and cared for each and every one of Konoha's citizens. Naruto's kindness and love.

Akashiori saw the world from a singular agent's view. His extensive on-field experience made him an exceptional shinobi, albeit cold and unsociable. He fought aggressively in the front lines like a merciless tornado, taking no prisoners and finishing the job in the quickest way possible. Naruto's wildness and impatience.

Uzumaki Naruto was…he was the human, innocent of heart and honest in nature, innovative and lively but, at the same time, foolhardy and jaded. His flaws only added to his unique charm.

And Aka was the mix of Akashiori and Naruto, a sly version born specifically for the task of ferreting out spies and running a clandestine surveillance operation on all Konoha personnel for treasonous activity. His personality fell somewhere in between the two. Playful at times but ruthless on the job.

While separate, the personas held independent thoughts as all shadow clones did. Naruto's careful assignment, or perhaps it could be called programming, of each persona only made the effect more pronounced. All four were brilliant in their individual roles. Once dispelled, their knowledge merged and was analyzed as one in Naruto's mind. Although it was an effective tactic, only someone with a specialized mind could handle such chaos. (Sarutobi didn't want to think about why Naruto's mind broke in the first place.) A clash between such powerful characters could be explosive.

Like the time Akashiori's furious fist splintered the table.

"Akashiori," Konoha's leader said sternly, "if you feel the need for offensive techniques, develop and present them at a future Kaigi. Arguing over this will not get us anywhere."

"Haikage-sama," Sarutobi addressed his fellow Kage just as seriously, "it will be advantageous to teach our shinobi advanced techniques which no other country has seen before. Surprise can evoke just as many mistakes from our enemies."

Sarutobi suppressed a smile when Akashiori crossed his arms and Haikage's shoulders stiffened. Despite their competence and maturity, these personas were still nineteen-year-old Narutos underneath.

"Now for Amegakure…" Four flares of killing intent filled the room as soon as Sarutobi uttered the name.

"Hanzou," Akashiori growled.

"He isn't the focus of this discussion," Naruto cut him off. "The names Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato are popping up. They haven't started Akatsuki yet, but rumors of them lending a helping hand to anyone in need are spreading. After the war begins, they'll gather followers for their peace campaign, which was what led Hanzou and Danzou to kill Yahiko. _We have to protect him. No matter what._ It's his death that caused Nagato to terrorize our world with his retarded version of peace."

The other three masked Narutos nodded their agreement.

Sarutobi smiled. The four Naruto personas held varying levels of ranking in the shinobi system, but they were always equals amongst themselves.

"Jijii, are you listening? I'm saying this out loud for your benefit."

"Ahh, of course I am. Perhaps if we hand Danzou a copy of Iro Iro, he will have more appreciation of attractive young men…"

Killing intent hit Sarutobi square in the face.

"B-boys, it was a joke," the closet pervert said hastily. "Danzou is meticulous; he rarely makes mistakes. We must allow him to put his plan in motion before throwing him a curveball. If caught, he will use his forked tongue to push the blame elsewhere, and if appropriate he will use force. He may have been my teammate, but I am prepared to fight him if he is a catalyst for the Fourth World War."

"There's also Tobi…" Naruto paused when a feral roar sounded in his mindscape. "Kyuubi wants a piece of him but the problem is, we can't find him. We made rounds through the Uchiha compound and the countries, but nothing. Kyuu knows his evil stink so we should have been able to identify him right away."

"Damn it! We should have knocked off his mask before pulverizing him," Akashiori cursed their folly. "We know nothing except his hair color, build, and voice."

"This is over twenty years in the past. Who knows what he looks like now," Aka pointed out. "He was able to hide his identity until the end. Even Sasuke never found out."

"Uchiha Madara is the only hint we have. They must have been in contact since Tobi used his fighting style. Madara was alive during the Third War to convince Yahiko to start Akatsuki, so is he somewhere training Tobi now?" Naruto rubbed his face with his hands. "Shit, we don't know where Tobi is from or his age."

Haikage looked at Sarutobi. "Our knowledge of the past is limited. Hokage-sama, I believe you met Madara. Do you know anything that could assist us in locating him?"

"I was a mere child back then. He had a liking for caves, but I know nothing specific. And Kyuubi?"

"He knows less since he was sealed into Uzumaki Mito immediately after being summoned to fight the Shodaime."

Naruto dropped his head on the table with a thunk. "So we only know that Madara is a psycho geezer with a grudge against Konoha and Tobi is his psycho apprentice with a grudge against the world. Fuck."

* * *

When Naruto exited into the hall, he immediately sensed Minato's gentle chakra signature leaning against the wall. How could anyone's chakra be so comforting?

"Hey." Minato caught his hand in a warm grasp.

"Um, hi," Naruto replied awkwardly.

"I didn't get to see you last night," the taller blonde said softly, rubbing circles on the back of Naruto's hand.

Naruto blushed in remembrance of the night before.

Badly hidden behind a half-open door, Jiraiya shot Naruto an exaggerated wink and thumbs up.

"Let's go somewhere else." Naruto pulled Minato by their connected hands into the next room. He looked around the dim space. A library. Moonlight shining through the window illuminated the sides of their faces.

"Naruto, are you angry with me?"

The silence was thick. Minato gingerly placed his free hand on Naruto's upper arm, but his stomach tightened uncomfortably when the smaller blonde tensed. Naruto hadn't been this edgy around him in over half a year as he had slowly come to trust his touch completely. The possibility that the trust might have been broken by his impulsive kiss chilled him to the bone.

"Do you know? I recently realized that Kushina loves me."

Naruto jerked. The Hunter-nin felt his heart race as his mind ran in circles around one thought. He was going to lose Minato. It was too soon! However selfish it was, he wanted more time together.

"But only because I've started to act like her," Minato confessed. "My eyes are drawn to you. I try to spend every free moment with you. I train harder to impress you. And even though you're one of the most powerful shinobi I know, I want to protect you." Minato layered a thin coat of chakra between his hand and Naruto's arm so perhaps he could transmit even a fraction his love. "I feel like I could take on the world if you're by my side."

When muscles underneath his hand relaxed, Minato took a step forward.

"The kiss might seem sudden, but I've wanted it for a while. I want you all to myself. I'm generally not a jealous person, but I have to control my anger whenever that kunoichi from Team 11 bats her eyelashes at you." Minato slid his hand up to cup Naruto's jaw. "Can you give us a chance?"

The time traveler stared into the earnest blue eyes so similar to his own. This was his father, declaring romantic love for his future son. It was ridiculous. It was nonsense. It was disgusting. It had to be a joke. But happiness burst throughout Naruto's body as he hung onto every word.

"I-I…" Naruto cleared his throat and tried again, "Minato, you're my f–" His mind raced as he fought with himself. The dilemma he had been struggling with jabbed painfully at his heart; telling would surely drive Minato away.

_I should tell him. It's the right thing to do._

But Naruto couldn't form the words. The ANBU Captain meant too much, and darkness would consume him again if Minato left.

"Minato, you're my…friend. Maybe you're confusing that with something more."

"I'm not. It's real." The larger blonde stroked the other blonde's cheek with each short sentence. "You had me captivated from the moment I first sensed your chakra."

Naruto couldn't think of a reply. The calloused hand on his cheek was a distraction, as well as the heat from the body leaning in. Ero-sennin was right. Minato put all his heart into this confession, evident in the shaky but heartfelt chakra brushing his scars with care.

"You're getting this all wrong. You need someone whole and clean. Kushina-san loves you, and you'll love her," Naruto said with difficulty.

"As sappy as it sounds, you're perfect in my eyes," the older blonde said as he rippled his chakra.

Naruto let out an involuntary sigh. His resistance was failing, chipped away little by little to the last line of mental guards.

The night before, he had sealed Minato out of his room and spent sleepless hours thinking, conducting a major self-exploration, about his feelings and the revelation Jiraiya had tactlessly dumped on him. Moreover, it was with a smug snort that the demon fox finally explained the mindscape lilacs which had been growing wildly since he returned from captivity in Ame.

'_Kit, your ignorance appalls me,' _Kyuubi had growled with an irritated swish of crimson tails. _'Your cluelessness is possibly the worst in all history, just as terrible as your multiple personality insanity.'_

Love.

According to his mind, he was falling in love with Minato.

It was absurd. Loving Minato was easy, but romantically? That was as ridiculous as Jiraiya being gay.

"You should take some time to clear your head," he said in a whisper which echoed within the library. "Go on an extended mission. A lot of red-yellow mission scrolls have come in recently. Or take a genin team. Prepare the next generation for the war." He saw the corners of Minato's lips turn down into a frown.

"Is my love for you so hard to accept?" Minato asked. "You know that I don't love lightly."

"We aren't supposed to love like this."

"You haven't rejected me. Tell me honestly that you feel nothing and I'll back off. But please don't lie to me, Naru-chan."

For an instant, Naruto cursed his weakness to the nickname, especially when it was uttered so tenderly. "Our relationship can't be anything more than friendship. Think about your reputation and future. Nothing good can come out of loving me."

"'Shouldn't' and 'can't' aren't words of rejection."

"Don't do this, Minato." Naruto shut his eyes, unable to separate his hope for Minato's affections and hope for the other blonde to forget his feelings. He had always been greedy for love, wanting and wishing for what he had been deprived of in childhood, doing all he could to earn acceptance and protecting what he was granted. It was a miracle that his precious, precious Minato was offering unconditional love without care for his revolting mental scabs.

"I'm not giving up." Minato leaned in to bump noses, urging the Hunter-nin to look at him. "You mean too much to me. I'd be lost without you," he said, unknowingly voicing Naruto's own thoughts. "I promise to make you happy."

Before Naruto could pull away, Minato brushed his lips against Naruto's, eliciting a small gasp of surprise. The kiss lasted only a second, but the sweet tingle lingering on his lips made him duck his head to hide the heat spreading across his cheeks.

Gathering as much conviction as he could dredge up in his flustered state, Naruto looked back up. "We need to stay professional. I'll take a few missions out of the village. We can't afford distractions with the war right around the corner."

"No, I'm not letting you run away. Give me a chance to prove my feelings, Naru-chan."

Minato tipped Naruto's face up and drilled crystal-clear eyes into the smaller blonde's troubled blue. He leaned in slowly to give a chaste kiss. Naruto took a shuddering breath, caught off guard by its innocence.

"Won't you give me a chance?"

Naruto trembled, his knees embarrassingly weak from Minato's soft tenor.

'I'm a twisted bastard for even considering this,' he thought, grimacing inwardly at his indecisiveness. He was silent for a long time. Chuckling humorlessly to himself when he finally reached a decision of indecision, Naruto reached out to finger a blond ear tail which reflected silver under the moonlight.

"Minato, I'm not ready to make this leap." _An enormous leap onto a sinful, convoluted road._

"Can I take that as a subtle confession that you like me back?" Minato asked.

"Maybe. You don't need to know that." Naruto regretfully let Minato's hair slip from his fingers and stepped back while rapidly gathering his and Kyuubi's massive chakra. "Sorry, Minato. I know it's unfair, but I'll see you in a bit." He suddenly condensed a calculated portion of the chakra and thrust it into the small seal at his hip.

_Jikan Makikaeshi no Jutsu_

In one blink, he was standing in the Kage Kaigi meeting room, 20 feet away from the door to the hall.

Before the time traveler could reorient, foreign memories trickled into his brain. Trees, the ocean, and an unfamiliar street – he knew right away what had happened. Three new clones that his Kage Bunshin created during the last 10 minutes he spent with Minato had dispelled because their existence had been erased when he rewound time. Memories of all dispelled clones had to return to their master, even through time.

_Fascinating–_

An angry growl from behind interrupted his analysis, "Naruto, what did you do now?"

The time traveler spun around to see a different set of three Kage Bunshin with varying degrees of irritation on their exposed faces. Naruto grinned guiltily and rubbed the back of his head as he fought the urge to shunshin away, especially from Akashiori.

"Uh, nothing to get angry about. Just some damage control."

"Must have been some major damage if you had to erase it. Spill," Aka said with a raised eyebrow.

"It wasn't me," Naruto protested. "Minato…" He blushed.

Haikage snorted dismissively and turned back to the map on the table. However, Akashiori wasn't as relenting and sent a poisonous glare at the fidgeting blonde.

Nervously, Naruto summed up the exchange. After a heavy pause, Akashiori leaned his hip against the round table and chuckled mockingly. When the unsympathetic Hunter-nin persona cut off his laugh with a dismissive snort identical to Haikage's, Naruto knew he had dodged a harsh scolding.

"A surprisingly smart move," Akashiori said, assessing Naruto with a thoughtful tilt of his head. "I hope this unusual show of intelligence extends farther than that miniscule moment. Minato is still standing vigilant outside the door with the same speech."

Naruto rolled his eyes at the insulting compliment. Aka winked at him before joining Haikage, pushing Akashiori back into his seat.

As he left the room for the second time, his keen ears heard Akashiori quietly reprimanding the Hokage. "…is not a laughing matter, Hokage-sama. Blood relations aside, this is wartime…"

Once the door shut behind him, Naruto was hit with déjà vu as Minato's gentle chakra entered his senses. He allowed his wrist to be caught again, but this time, he discreetly extended a chakra string to close the door on Jiraiya's face.

"Hey."

"Hi," Naruto replied.

"I didn't get to see you last night," the taller blonde said softly, rubbing circles on the back of Naruto's hand.

The shorter man blushed despite himself.

"Naruto, are you angry with me?"

Naruto sighed. "No."

After a few moments, Minato smiled. "Do you know? I recently realized that Kushina loves me."

The man confessed his love as he did last time and slid his hand up to cup Naruto's jaw. "Can you give us a chance?"

"Maybe you're confusing friendship with something more," Naruto repeated.

"I'm not. It's real. You had me from the moment I first sensed your chakra. I was captivated."

Resolutely, Naruto stared into earnest blue eyes; this was where events would diverge. "Minato, I can't answer you because of so many underlying issues," he held up his hand to stop the ANBU Captain from speaking, "but I know there's little chance of you giving up." _Unless I break your heart cruelly, and that's something I could never bring myself to do._ "So all you have to do is convince me."

Minato tilted his head, pleasantly surprised by the unexpected turn of events. The conversation was going better than he had hoped.

"_But_ it can't get in the way of war preparations or training. If I ever feel that you're putting personal desires before Konoha's well-being, I'll sever all contact aside from Kage Kaigi, and you'll never hear from Uzuhara Naruto again," Naruto cautioned. It meant that although they would continue to meet, all casual contact would disappear.

"I accept."

Naruto searched the taller blonde's face for sincerity and relaxed when he found it in abundance. "Fantastic," he said and took a step back to reclaim his personal space. "Then I'll be going. See you bright and early for training." Naruto escaped the hall in an expert shunshin.

Minato grinned.

"Well, well, well. Congrats, brat. At least it wasn't a rejection." Jiraiya stepped into the hall. "How many times did you practice that speech?"

The young apprentice cringed. "You watched the entire thing."

"Of course, how could I miss my student's first confession?" The toad sage slung an arm around Minato's shoulders, trapping him, and bent over conspiratorially. "I'll help you form a strategy. With the Great Jiraiya-sensei's guidance, he'll be yours in no time."

Minato groaned.

"Patience. Let's save the groaning and moaning for your cutie."

* * *

Two blonde men, one dressed in a standard jounin uniform and the other in ANBU gear, walked towards Ichiraku Ramen, deep in conversation. The shorter of the two made animated gestures with his hands as if to emphasize his point. The other man ruffled his friend's blond hair, hopping out of the way when a fist shot at his side.

"The match goes to me," Naruto insisted as he made a futile attempt to straighten his disheveled hair. "My critical hit was half a second faster. Your spine would have been shattered if it was a real fight."

Minato smiled fondly at his companion who glared in return.

Naruto's attitude had barely changed after their late-night confession several weeks before. The ANBU Captain couldn't be more thankful that their relationship hadn't deteriorated. The only difference was Minato's increased affections, but things didn't always go smoothly as planned.

Once, Minato had shown up at Naruto's door with stunning flowers from the Yamanaka shop. Naruto had taken one look at the deadly shinobi holding a bundle of pink, yellow, and purple blossoms and howled in unadulterated laughter. Meanwhile Minato was bright red from embarrassment, still standing in the hall and hoping that none of their ANBU colleagues walked in on the scene.

Needless to say, he never brought flowers again. Food and training invitations were much more effective anyway.

"Naruto, you wouldn't have been able to block the next attack at your heart before I died."

"Still, you died first."

"And I would have taken you down with me. That's not a win."

Naruto pouted. Minato's eye twitched.

Minato sighed in resignation. "Fine, I'll treat this time," he grumbled half-heartedly. It wasn't as if he was truly upset about paying; Naruto's appetite barely dented his ANBU salary. He just loved the bantering.

"What are your thoughts about taking a genin team?" Naruto suddenly asked after a particularly loud slurp.

Without hesitation, Minato shook his head beside his friend. "Training, our work, missions. I don't have time to raise kids."

Naruto frowned inwardly as he set his bowl back on the counter. Had Minato been reluctant to take a team in the Past? "You could be part-time ANBU, and we could work while the kids chase the cat," he suggested.

"What about you?" Minato returned.

"Can you imagine how the kids will turn out with me as their teacher?"

Minato blanched at the idea of three additional pranksters wreaking havoc on the village.

Naruto spent the remainder of lunch arguing his case: there are plenty of excellent ANBU-nin to carry out customary A- to S-rank missions; you could still take ANBU missions but pick ones that need your expertise; Tiger is thinking of retiring from ANBU anyway (_Naruto, how did you know that?_); I pinky promise to help you train them.

"Why are you so set on me taking a genin team?" Minato asked as he set his chopsticks down.

Naruto fell quiet. Why indeed, if not for the sake of following the original timeline?

"Because you need to gain the trust of Konoha ninja if you're going to lead them to war. That won't happen while working in ANBU shadows. Haikage-sama and Akashiori can't lead the general populace, and the Hokage is only a single person. People already respect your name and accomplishments. Now you need their love and undying loyalty to hold them together."

"Why can't I be a Tokubetsu Jounin like you?"

"Devotion to the next generation of Konoha's protectors shows your devotion to Konoha. People need to see just as much compassion as strength. That's the Will of Fire."

Minato reached out to gently press on Naruto's Hunter-nin tattoo hidden under the jounin uniform. "Naruto, you are the epitome of the Will of Fire. Konoha would follow you to the ends of the universe."

The time traveler shook his head. "I don't have the right to claim this village as my own–"

"Whether you do or don't is for Konoha to decide," Minato murmured.

"–This village needs you," Naruto continued as if he hadn't been interrupted.

Minato was silent for several minutes, rolling the words "genin team" and "sensei" around in his head. The job was possibly more daunting than long-term S-rank infiltration missions.

"It takes more than excellence in the shinobi arts to teach children," he said as he absently molded five dots of compressed chakra on each fingertip. He rolled the dimly glowing chakra beads down to his palm, whirled them around on the calloused surface, and spiraled them back up his fingers.

"You'll do well, no matter what the circumstance," Naruto reassured quietly, eyes glued to the display of expert chakra control.

Minato looked quizzically at his friend as he contemplated the enigmatic blonde's tone. Naruto's words always seemed to hint a depth to them that he couldn't grasp. He sighed. "Loosen up, Naru-chan. It's a life-changing decision, but I get what you're saying." He extinguished the swirling chakra with decisive abruptness. "I'll follow you to the ends of the universe and Konoha can follow me. I know you won't lead us wrong." His hid a smile when Naruto turned pink. "Let's speak with Hokage-sama to work out the kinks."

The astonished expression and huge grin that split Naruto's face warmed Minato's heart.

* * *

Several days later, they were back at the ramen stand.

"Well, it worked out pretty well. Right in time for the new batch of Academy graduates," Minato mumbled. "I can't believe I'm going to be a teacher – and Kakashi's, no less."

The Hokage had agreed whole-heartedly with the idea, echoing Naruto's rationale. They had hashed out a plan, hitting only one little road bump in the process that resulted in a shouting match between the Hunter-nin and leader (which escalated when Naruto insulted the Hokage's intelligence). Finally, they sealed his impending future when he penned his chakra signatures on the part-time employment contracts.

It was due to the aforementioned road bump that Naruto was currently emitting dark chakra vibes.

"Are you still sulking because of Hokage-sama's suggestion? That was two days ago."

"It's a huge deal! I can't believe Jijii even considered putting Kakashi, Gai, and Ibiki on a team. Why doesn't anyone else see what a disaster that would be?"" Naruto exclaimed in horror. "It's like mixing ramen, cheesecake, and tomato sauce in a blender for brunch."

Minato quirked an eyebrow at the comparison. "I think they would make a well-rounded team. Maito Gai was top of his class and has great potential for taijutsu and weapons mastery. Morino Ibiki shows interest in medical ninjutsu and genjutsu, but his below-average grades were from lack of participation. Kakashi specializes in ninjutsu and is recognized for strategic prowess."

"It doesn't matter. Gai is mental, he'll turn Kakashi mental, and Ibiki will find the mental-ness educational," Naruto flailed his hands dramatically. He swore the senile Hokage was trying to turn everyone in the village crazy.

"At least you convinced him to replace Gai with Uchiha Obito. He also has taijutsu and weaponry potential," Minato said as he patted Naruto on the shoulder, fingers lingering too long on the Hiraishin seal on Naruto's neck. He smirked at the suspicious look directed his way.

Naruto sighed dejectedly. "But I couldn't bring together the original members," he whispered. _Rin._

Sarutobi had been adamant about having Ibiki act as mediator between Obito the prankster and Kakashi the mischievous little devil. When Naruto had suggested Nohara Rin, he had vetoed the idea, stating that she lacked the temperament to handle both rascals.

"Don't forget your promise to help."

"Tch. I know, I know," Naruto grumbled. "I don't go back on my promises."

Minato moved his mouth next to Naruto's ear. "Good, that will give me more chances to steal kisses from you."

He laughed and ordered another bowl for his frozen blonde.

* * *

**A/N: **This turned out more like a filler chapter. I'm really sorry I couldn't fit Kakashi-kun in. He'll be in the next, along with more exciting events.

By the way, for those of you that are concerned, this will be Naruto's last breakdown for a while :)

In the middle of writing this chapter, I discovered Tobi's real identity from Naruto wikia. There's no need to edit any previous chapters, but Naruto's Past will deviate even more from canon.

Next chapter: genin team; birthdays; enter Hyuuga.

_May 12, 2013 – Happy One-Year Anniversary!_


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